Container gardening – act two

bold & dramatic planting

The weather is settling, most of the vegetable garden is planted and perennials are growing and budding at an alarming rate.  It’s time to turn to reworking my container plantings.  Last winter took a huge toll on all my mixed succulent plantings.  I’m embarrassed to say they’re still front and center on my porch for the whole world to take in their blackened corpses.  It’s like Mortia Adams gardens here!

The resilient, tough, drought-tolerant combinations were perfect for containers on my hot exposed deck the last couple of seasons.  No worries about dragging the watering can through the dining room every day.  The intricate compositions of burgundy, teal, gray and green foliage were absolutely fabulous with little help from me.  I was so smug…here‘s what I blogged about them last year.  And then, Mother Nature caught up with me – again.

Maybe it’s the current economic climate as well as our terrestrial one that’s keeping me from pulling the trigger and replacing all my mushy darlings – tender succulent carefree maintenance doesn’t come cheap!  At any rate, I’m still in the mulling-it-over phase of my container do-over.  Maybe this article I wrote for the May issue of Angie’s List Magazine will inspire me:

Give containers an encore

Former actress, garden designer and container planting diva, Wendy Welch knows a thing or two about putting on a show.  As owner of Seattle’s A-rated Wendy Welch Garden Design, she’s spent the last 15 years creating container plantings for residential and commercial clients alike throughout the Northwest.  Her dramatic compositions are lasting, yet ever changing, and dazzlingly beautiful throughout the entire year. Welch shares her secrets for producing successful garden theatrer.

Welch works with a mix of trees, shrubs, perennials and annuals that are suitable for container cultivation.  Selecting first for structure, form and foliage – the three acts of garden design – she combines plants with similar growth rates so the composition remains balanced and pleasing.  Plants with strong architectural form and presence carry the show throughout the year.  Like a star player, they provide a focal point and anchor the planting.

Another tip Welch recommends is to consider the “winter picture” first when designing a container – what will it look like in January?  “Contrasting textures from fine leafed plants and grasses combined with bold foliage that outlasts seasonal bloom, keeps the composition appealing over a long period,” she says.  “Flowers are the finale and only make the cut if they can sustain a 10 week bloom period.”

Wendy has a cast of favorite plants for supporting roles.  Long-lived sculptural trailers like prostrate conifers and groundcover shrubs fill in empty space and dress the edge of a pot to provide a finished look.  “Even the most common plant can elevate an entire planting by making everything around them look even better,” she maintains.  “Don’t limit yourself to annuals; shop the entire nursery for color, form and texture.”

An emphatic advocate of sustainable garden practices, Welch recommends little to no extra fertilizing, non-peat based potting mixes and organic controls.  The result?  Her finished compositions have an average lifespan of five years; a nice long run.  After all, the show must go on!

All photos are courtesy of Wendy Welch Garden Design.

Tagged as: container gardening, writing