I HAVE A VERY LARGE POT IN THE SHADE ON MY FRONT PORCH AND WANT SOMETHING VERY INTERESTING THAT LOOKS GOOD ALL SUMMER..ANY SUGGESTIONS? IT GETS A LITTLE MORNING SUN.
LARGE POT IN SHADE
I had a barrel planter last year that I loved, mixing perennials (so I could plant them in the landscape in the fall; but could be left in the pot) with annuals. The contents were:
Dragon's Wing begonia (which became HUGE by the end of the summer)
Gold Hosta
Heuchera
Lady's Mantle
Variegated Liriope
Goldfish plant
Portulaca (which didn't end up getting enough sun and had too much moisture because of the needs of the other plants)
Here's a pic soon after planting.
Good luck and happy planting!
This message was edited Apr 19, 2005 7:22 AM
I have a really big pot under my oak trees in the backyard and this year I put an elephant ear in the middle (standard green one), white caladiums around that, and hot pink impatients around the edges. So far the bulbs haven't come up so a picture would be pointless but I will post one later in the season. :) I know, not "interesting" but pretty and low maintenance! Also, maybe put a trellis in the pot and grow a climbing hydrangea? I think those look very dramatic in a pot, especially if it's a big pot and a really tall trellis! I just don't think you can beat impatients for vibrant color in the shade, so maybe you could even add some around the edge of the pot for a splash of color.
I did put a big pot next to my front door (very shady front porch) and made a temporary water garden until I have time to refurbish my pond in the backyard. I have 3 water/"bog" plants in it now and it looks really cool. I can't recall the names, but one is a grassy plant and the other 2 are "rushes-" a corkscrew rush and a spike rush. So the different shapes and textures are really cool together. I will toss in a few gold fish to keep the mosquitoes away and that should also add some interest.... don't really expect to come to someone's front door and see a mini-water garden there! :)
That pot is gorgeous Mickgene! and thanks Texasgarden (wish I had a garden in Texas)! Good ideas and I will post a picture if I can learn how to get one on here with my new digital camera..so far I have no idea.
Thanks, levilya. I'm planning a similar one again, but this time with a little better contrast in foliage.
To post your pic, after completing your post, at the bottom where it has a box for an image address and "Browse", click on "Browse", find the pic you've saved onto your computer, and then Double-click on the pic in the file as if to open it. You should then see it's file name in the box below Image. You can preview it using that button to make sure you actually posted the pic you wanted to. If so, hit Send and you're done!
Michele
I've had good luck with tuberous begonia, alstroemeria, torenia, balsam impatiens (nice for a taller accent), and trailing coleus. I'm especially fond of the trailing coleus -- the smaller leaves are nice, the colors are gorgeous, and it grows like crazy. Pinch it back several times for a fuller plant. Cuttings root quickly in water, so it's easy to keep a little pot or two indoors over the winter and then take a bunch of cuttings in spring (put rooted cuttings in little pots or cell packs so they get a good little root ball before planting out).
I have never heard of trailing coleus...is there a special name or cultivar? I love the different colors of the regular coleus but a trailing one would be perfect. Does is trail like ivy or blue wave torenia?
It doesn't hang as straight down as ivy does, but it will drape nicely well past the edge of a pot. I like the trailing coleus because it has much smaller leaves than regular coleus.
Here's a picture of it along my front walk last year. It was recently chopped back off the walk, so this doesn't really give you a great idea of the way it "trails."
Would you like me to root a few cuttings for you? I bet they'd travel OK in a bubble envelope, especially if I tucked them into cardboard TP tubes... Or if you're planning to head up this way any time soon, I'm just a short distance off 70, and then we wouldn't have to trust them to the tender mercies of the USPS.
(edited to say oops, forgot picture, guess it won't let me add it here, so I'll post below)
This message was edited Apr 29, 2005 11:11 AM
oooooo,Texasgarden,do you mind if I copy your elephant ear,caladium idea?
It's the first year i have grown both of these and NOW I know to plant them together! Sounds PERFECT!
Here's the picture of the trailing coleus & balsam impatiens along my front walk at the end of last summer
Wow Critter! That sure is pretty!
Golgi- copy away. I'm sure I'm not the first person to do this combo. Ha! :)
One little issue I have discovered though... I put my impatients around the edge of that pot. Impatients like lots of water. I planted my EE and caladium bulbs in the pot already too, and over watering can rot the bulbs so everything I have read says to NOT water until the bulbs sprout. Oops! So now I am trying to keep the impatients alive but not rot the bulbs in the process. I keep telling myself if they don't sprout soon, I am going to have to take out the impatients and re-pot them after the bulbs come up b/c then they all three (impatients, EEs and caladiums) will need lots of water.
Ah, container gardening. LOL!
I know they really don't look like they trail at all from that photo! They "trail" pretty much like a wave petunia, in that they mound up and then over (way over) the edge of a container. When they had trailed over half the front walk (the week before I took this picture), it was time to cut them back!
I like to put things like those EE & Caladium bulbs in a little pot until I know they've sprouted, then plant them. So if you dig anything up, maybe remove the bulbs from the center of the pot rather than disturbing the impatiens....
You can also just keep the bulbs in the pot and plant the whole thing in the middle, as long as you leave room. That really helps when plants have different watering requirements.
Jill, are those the same balsam impatiens you sent me seeds for? They're gorgeous!
Yes they are! They really liked that shady, fairly moist bed! You will love them!
oh critterologist..I love you planting..here is the picture I did on my porch...what do you think?
Gorgeous! The variagated ivy really brightens it up! I love that pot -- almost looks robin-egg-blue in the pic.
What's the plant with the yellowish grassy leaves?
Hakonechloa macra 'Aureola'...which I dug up from my garden. I am wondering if I should have put a third in the middle in front 3 is better than 2 don't you think? The pot is actually pale green.
BTW, if anyone wants 'Balsam Impatiens', I have a couple of little packets left, both with and without the coral red color....
Beautiful lev- both the pot itself and the plantings!
Critter- I would love some of the impatiens! Do you want me to just send you a SASE? I don't have much to trade right now, but I can email you my veeeery short list if you want to see if I have something that appeals to ya. :)
Jamie
Jamie, I'll be happy to send you some.... no need to send postage, we can "even up" sometime in the future, and if we don't that's OK too. Do you want me to try to send a couple of trailing coleus cuttings as well? I'm not sure how well they'd travel by BE, but it might be worth a shot (I'll stick them in a cardboard TP tube).
Critter- you have email. :O)