Garden Planning: Containers

A semp stepping up to flower, in a shallow clay pot of perennial succulents-- no guilt here

 

I actually have planned my garden baskets, pots, and boxes this year.  Typically, this is hit or miss and I am still potting them up in July. This all seems remiss of me.  This year I have promised myself to do a few things in the garden better and try not to become overwhelmed.

I outlined a garden plan. I think the first step in any plan is self knowledge.
I hate to water. I really do. Unfortunately, I can't walk past a plant without feeling its pain, its thirst, so I stop and water and water, and water. I am unable to understand how Handsome Son can walk past the same plant and not see its pain, feel its thirst. I wish I was this empathic with people; but no, it is plants which talk to me.

To this end, it is no surprise to any of you that semps and succulents form the backbone of my summer porch potted display. I can walk past them and they are infinitely cheery baking in the hot sun of my southern exposure deck from which the very devil sun seems to bake off the paint.

I love this coleus for its intense color. It looks like something is in bloom all summer and seems to be more drought tolerant than many coleus. It is even overpowering the variegated airplane plant (see that strip of white and green?), another drought tolerant annual. I saved cuttings of each of these. Both do well in sun, shade, with and without water. Drought in the case of these plants I tend to plant only in containers really translates to "lazy gardener"syndrome ("I can't hear you! La, la, la,la....").

In addition to my hot, sunny deck, I have a couple baskets and pots in a partially shaded area of my garden which gets full sun from 11 AM until about 2 PM; the best time-- NOT! To water there, I have to drag out quite a length of hose. My go-to non-succulent is often the dragon wing begonias because they will forgive me for the dry shade. I didn't save any cuttings from mine from last year, however. I have decided on trying my hand at raising a few flats of bedding begonias from seed,  Pizzazz Pink Begonia, this year.

One of two additions to my succulent collection last year. A piece of this nipped in the spring from my scree garden will make a container pop!

I also decided on some Rapido white campanulas and saved some Blackie sweet potato and some interesting leaved alocasias along with my non-hardy succulents which spend winter in an upstairs bedroom window.

Lettuce mix in my large green pot

Until I started listing all my pots, baskets, and containers, I didn't realize how many were actually in areas where it is dry shade. It was a helpful exercise. I also realized after planting one of my pots closest to my water bib to a lettuce mix in the early spring last year; how nice it was to have that lettuce container just outside my front door. It is the ultimate kitchen garden. To that end, it is something I plan on repeating. Another large pot on my deck I plant  with annuals for color, I also plan to plant to ornamental edibles. This year it will beplanted with  nasturtiums, chard, red giant mustard, basil, and parsley. Has anyone else noticed how good a container filler plant parsley is?

Do you plan your containers in advance? What do you put in yours? Do they look good all summer?