Do you have any tips for creating an assortment of plants in a container?

I live in zone 5 and am looking to place a container on my front poarch which gets afternoon sun (west facing). How do I created the appropriate planting environment (gravel, potting soil, etc)? Any suggestions for a mix of trillers, fillers and spillers (leafy and/or flowering plants)? I am a beginner gardener. If you have any links to pics of plants or flowers, it would be appreciated.



Thanks

Do you have any tips for creating an assortment of plants in a container?
Hi there. I happen to live in zone five, too. I am an avid gardener and happy to help you.



I don't put gravel in the bottom of mine. It does not really create drainage unles there is a hole in the bottom of your containers. Good potting soil drains well, anyway. Pick one that has a slow release fertilizer in it for maximum blooms.



Put your spillers in first on both ends and one in the middle, front. If you use creeping Jenny in zone five, you won't have to buy spiller next year - it is a very reliable perennial, and you will have the added advantage of taking starts from it every year to get it going elsewhere in the garden. It will give you a beautiful lime green shade that will make your pinks and purples POP! Bright pink wave petunias look fantastic with creeping Jenny.



You will need one plant with a little height -- I love spikes for this. They give a terrific vertical accent that lives through November or so in zone 5. And how about some candy cane zinnias or awakoe dahlias for the mid height plants? And if you want some filler that is light and airy in there, fiber optic or pony tail grass is beautiful, as is dill. Both will give it movement, too. Finally, don't forget to add one dark accent -- a black colocasia or a very dark sweet potato vine. These look splendid against the backdrop of lime greencreeping Jenny.



Here is my favorite tip for container gardens: sneak some bulbs under the soil in fall, for early spring blooms before gardening season gets fully underway in zone 5. Jonquils and hyacinths will surprise you pretty early next year.



Happy gardening!
Reply:First getting container, pots etc ready. Drainage is important. Make sure containers have holes for drainage. Although you can use gravel you can also use the plastic peanuts used for packaging. This can be up to 1/3 of container. next use a good potting mixture. You can buy this premixed, in fact you can buy miracle grown and it has added nutrients to give the transplants a great boost in the beginning. Never used regular soil in a container.



Next step is deciding what you want to plant. This will be the hardest part because there are endless choices. If you use window boxes on the edge of the porch you could use wave petunias. I would put a small trellis in for climbing plants if you choose some. Some good flower choices that have abundant blooms are, Sweet pea (climber), sweet potato vine (climber) comes in a great lime green colour. petunias, marigolds, verbena.



The following web site has plans and great-how-to



http://www.bhg.com/gardening/



Good Luck and enjoy
Reply:It sounds like you know what you are doing: Make sure your pot has some drainage. Make sure your plants have similar water and sun needs (probably full sun, if you planter is not going to be under any eaves.) Then go for colors that will look good with your house color. Now the fun part: combine textures, shapes, heights, dark and light. You may not get it right the first year, that's okay! Growing plants is all about learning and experimenting. Just remember to make some notes in the fall, because over the winter, you can forget a lot!
Reply:I think it's important to use plants that all have the same care needs. Put the taller ones toward the center, going smaller as you come to the edge, leaving those that may drape for the very edge. Red Salvia would look good in the center, or anything that will stay upright. Good luck, and have fun!
Reply:Container plant combos:



http://www.fernlea.com/awesomeaccents/re...
Reply:go to your gardening nursrey. there are plenty of people there that are real good at that stuff.