This has become one of my favorite forums. Although I have a yard to plant, I still love planting in containers. It keeps things neater, and also, I can drag stuff around the yard to see where it grows best in case I do want to plant in-ground.
Up until now, I have planted only one plant in each container. Recently, I tried two "combination" plantings (shown below).
Any ideas for other nice combinations?
Jean
I garden strictly in containers (11th floor balcony), and I'm always trying out/looking for combo suggestions...
Last year, I did coleus "Inky Fingers" with sweet potato vine "margarite" - really nice combo. Also - spikes, petunias (upright and trailing), sanvitalia and helichrysum. Or spikes, english ivy, New Guinea impatiens and caladiums - did well in shade. Lots of times, the combos are accidental - like the box with sweet potato vine, yellow marigolds and a bunch of zinnias that I had nowhere else to put. That turned out really nice - surprisingly.
Lots of times, I just get ideas from "in-ground" beds/borders. This year, one of the combos I'm planning is cosmos, zinnias, and salvia, with maybe some vinca vine (or my fav, sweet potato vine) for the trailing effect.
Herbs are good flower companions, too - like pineapple sage with blue ageratum. Spanish thyme has such an interesting leaf formation, it looks good with just about anything.
Oh, I'm just brimming with untried ideas; here's a link to some "container gardens" - nice ideas there -
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/floriculture/container-garden/web_gallery/index.html
And below is an early pic of my coleus-SPV combo from last year......
PV
Oh my! PV, that IS pretty!
I saw that coleus and, at the time, thought it a little too intense, but combined with the 'Marguerite,' it is lovely.
I have some miniature zinnias that I've been wanting to plant, but never thought about growing them in containers (didn't know they would grow in a container).
You've given me some wonderful ideas. Thank you so much! And thanks for the link too.
Jean
Gorgeous!! I did hot coral geraniums with the sweet potato vine and some terra cotta million bells with a bit of licorice plant and some vinca -- so far looks great, but early in the season yet, -- will do a lot of filling out in the hanging baskets during the summer. The only problem with the sweet potato vine is that the roots take over the pot sometimes!!
I'm trying out nasturstiams and yellow freesia (the ones from Ursula in Chile) in a container this year. Will take pics later, when they grow up a little bit. :)
I have a lot of shade and/or dappled shade. Last year I used purple fountain grass with two kinds of sweet potato vine (black and lime green) and coleus that was a lime-maroon combination. In some of the pots I tucked in some blue browalia as well, and was really happy with the results of these pots. The foliage had plenty of color, and rather than petering out like many containers do toward the end of the season, these got better as the fountain grass sent up its beautiful plumes.
P.S. Your pots are beautiful!
The "shade" container was planted around the end of April or beginning of May.
Look at it now. That 'Marguerite' grows pretty fast.
That's a really nice one, Jean! What's the tall plant?
And yes, that "marguerite" will try and take over the world! I've grown "blackie" and the tricolor one in containers; this year I'm trying "black heart".
PV
The tall plant is a small Areca palm I got at Home Depot.
The pink blooms are that of a begonia (you can see the begonia better in the first picture, before it got lost in the grouping).
On either side is the 'Marguerite,' and the silvery plant in front is Dusty Miller.
I love those little palm trees!
Yolordgarden, What is terra cotta million? I have never heard of it. Do you have a picture? All I can grow is in pots. So alwas looking for good ideds.
Kneff, Were did you find Sweet Potato Vine? Again I never heard of that.I have grown reg. sweet potato in a glass of water in the house. Didn't know they had them for outside.
Thanks, Mary
binky, I know you asked Kneff, but I wanted to let you know that the leafy, light-green plant hanging on either side of the container (in the picture I posted May 21) is the ornamental sweet potato vine known as 'Marguerite.' Here's a link to the plant in our Plants Database:
http://plantsdatabase.com/go/53068/index.html
There is also another commonly-sold, very dark purple, almost black-looking cultivar known as 'Blackie.'
Here is a link to some ornamental sweet potatoes in our Plants Database:
http://plantsdatabase.com/b/Convolvulaceae/Ipomoea/batatas///
I bought my 'Marguerite' at Home Depot and also ordered some plants from Park's Seeds. Hope that helps.
Hi Binky, Sweet Pea is right--most garden centers are carrying ornamental sweet potato vine. The "Margarita" is lime green, and I've used two "black" versions, "Blackie" with a toothed leaf and "Ace of Spades" with a heart-shaped leaf. There is also a tricolor that has white, light green, and pink variegation. I don't find the latter to be as robust as the others. At the end of the season if you dig them out, there are small potatoes under the soil. They're very tender, and melt down at our first cold temps. That shouldn't be a problem in Tucson, if you are able to find the plants. They'd like your heat, but I'm not sure about the lack of humidity. If you try them, don't put them in the midday or afternoon sun; they'll fry in a heartbeat.
We have a second home in Fountain Hills, near Phoenix. I use Million Bells in containers there, and they're good for the winter season and much of the summer, as long as they're kept watered. I haven't looked for sweet potato vine in AZ, as my pots get too much sun.
