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by Georgeanne Davis |
Tuesday, June 22, 2021 10:45 am
As the post-pandemic economy resumes, I have noticed some unexpected loopholes in the garden supply chain. Last year, seed and seedling suppliers were surprised by the demand fueled by the surge in new gardeners, and their displays and benches were emptied. This year their inventory appears to be sufficient, but when I tried to buy a good quality border spade, several sources were sold out by August. Same story for a mini spade, so handy for those of us of shorter stature. Most shockingly, my favorite store’s shelves for cheap plant containers of all sizes, shapes, and materials were empty and out of garden hoses.
Since I had a lot of plants and potting soil, but no containers, with the summer feeling like it was grazing away from me, I decided to look for some sort of converted planter in the shed and barn. An old tool box or wash tub had to hide in a cobweb corner that would hold the potting soil while the water on the bottom could run off. In fact, I didn’t even make it to the barn as I found four bottomless juice buckets in a dark corner of the shed. Someone must have cut out the bottom at once to use it as a crop protection, but more sniffing around turned up some old rubber dog bowls that served as inserts to replace the bottom of the buckets, and I was good to go.
Whether you’re using traditional ceramic or terracotta pots, or resorting to baskets, old storage tanks, or even reusable grocery bags, container growing is an easy way to add color to your landscape without digging holes or controlling weeds. At home, the kitchen garden has become easy prey for herbivorous wildlife – I’m talking about you, chipmunks and rabbits – so I decided to hide the basil, both amethyst and genovese, flat and curly parsley, and rosemary by using them mixed with flowers, everything from tiny violas and pansies to bold burgundy geraniums and amaranth. If I had found larger containers, I could have mixed even larger types of vegetables with the flowers, such as rainbow chard or tiny currant tomatoes or strawberries that could trickle out of the pots.
Container gardening can get expensive, what with all the pots, potting soil, fertilizer and so on. Here are some ways to keep expenses down, aside from finding free pots. By the way, if you’re missing a shed or barn and your transfer station has a swap shop, it can be an excellent source of recycled planters. Over the past few years I’ve found goodies like old watering cans, flour sifters, and kettles that have served me well. Whatever your container, filling it with the best potting soil you can find is a good idea. If you’re keeping your filled container for the next year and haven’t had any disease issues during the growing season, you can save potting soil by refreshing your pots instead of emptying them completely. Just combine half of last year’s soil with half of the new mix. Don’t skimp on your potting soil and try to reduce the amount of soil by adding stones, foam, or other materials to the bottom of the pot, as this can interfere with good drainage.
When you have a lot of containers to fill, the most economical way to do this is to mix your own potting soil. A recommended mix is six gallons of peat moss or coconut fiber (coconut fiber), four and a half gallons of perlite, six gallons of compost (from your trash is fine), one and a half cups of granulated organic fertilizer, and if you’re using peat instead of coconut, a quarter cup of crushed or powdered it Limestone.
Instead of just filling your pots with newly purchased annuals, look around your perennial beds for plants that you can dig up and divide for use in pots. The best are those with foliage that pique interest well beyond the few weeks they bloom. I dug and parted several varieties of hosta to mix with annuals, picking out those with more colored markings, like dark green with a lime green border and blue-green leaves with cream centers. I also used a lady’s mantle, the curled leaves of which still look crispy even after the lemon blossoms. You can return the perennials to the ground in autumn for wintering. Another alternative to purchased fillers is to move selected indoor plants outdoors and give them a summer vacation. Just remember to harden houseplants, gradually expose them to sun and heat, and avoid locations in full sun.
Finally, since it’s June and you’re impatient with containers overflowing with lush flowers and leaves, your first impulse may be to seek satisfaction immediately and overfill the containers so that the plants are almost touching. Try to be patient and hold back. Fewer plants will fill up well within a few weeks. Don’t forget that, unlike plants grown in the ground, container plants cannot draw nutrients from the soil. Regular feeding of container plants replaces nutrients that are washed out by frequent watering and ensures that the plants look their best throughout the growing season. While fertilizer is important, don’t overdo it; too little fertilizer is always better than too much.
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