Use What You Have!
using what you may already have on hand. You can
plant in almost anything that will hold dirt!
You may already have the plants in your backyard!
The tin bucket was a hideous shade of green;
I just rubbed some white acrylic paint all over,
and I think it helps the raised design to stand out.
It looks a bit like galvanized tin in the photo, but actually looks
more white in real life. I may go back and "whiten" it up a little more.
The ceramic soup tureen is something I never use,
and it was el cheapo in the first place,
so I don't mind filling it with dirt!
I had an idea for the soup tureen
At the back of the yard there are some lilies of the valley
that rarely get seen because they are so out-of-the-way.
They are also rather invasive and keep spreading year after year.
So I didn't mind digging some up.
If you have plants around like that,
they can be very happy residing in a pot!
These are so sweet looking with their tiny white bells,
it's a shame not to have them front and center while they are blooming.
The blooms won't last long, so I'll replace them
with something else after they fade.
All parts of lily of the valley are poisonous,
so if you use them wash your hands well!
Better yet, wear gloves AND wash your hands!
so I added some broken crockery to keep
the roots from getting soggy.
my plants love it best) and tuck the little plants in snugly.
It covers the soil, and helps keep the plants from drying out.
It comes all dried out in a bag.
Just soak it in water to get it nice and soggy,
then it's ready to use.
The only thing I had to buy for this was the moss.
I had some potting soil left over from last year
and the plants and container were free!
I used the rest of the bag of moss to line a wire basket .
but the moss is just lining the edges.
Just snug it up against the bottom and sides,
and the soil and plants will eventually hold it in place.
(sometimes called Million Bells) in the basket.
They look like tiny petunias, but are much less fussy.
These have the enticing name, "Caribbean Cocktail"! Yum!
They will grow like crazy and will eventually fill the space
and trail over the sides when they get going.
roots just winding round and round inside the pot
and coming out the bottom, just gently pull the roots apart
to separate them somewhat so they will grow outward
and not stay cramped in a tight ball. If you have to,
it's better to just make some vertical cuts with a sharp knife
or pruners than to leave the roots tangled up like that.
I wish I could have planted these 2 or 3 weeks ago
so you could see how they will fill out,
but it was too early to buy them at the nursery.
I'll post another pic in a few weeks!
Other than what I've shown here, you might try baskets
or wooden boxes (line both with plastic first).
Decorate empty coffee cans or plant violets in teacups!
Tiny succulent plants look adorable in teacups also.
I have wood planter boxes on my front porch
which need to be lined with plastic.
I found some biodegradable plastic (sold in the paint
department at Lowes for dropcloths) and used it last year.
Didn't feel so bad throwing it away at the end of the summer
since (I assume) it won't hang around in the landfill til the end of time.
Well, this is getting longer than War and Peace,
but here are some pictures of the other containers I used.
and some English Thyme.
(The thyme smells so good, I wanted to
snip some off and go cook something)
Again, this will be so pretty once it starts to grow.
This one is the only real "flower pot".
It's one of the lightweight fake terra cotta ones .
Really doesn't look bad; I left it outside all winter
(and oh what a winter it was). No sign of falling apart ,
and so easy to move even when it's full of soil.
It's at least 3 years old; don't even remember when I got it.
with white Alyssum all around.
When you place annuals in a container,
it doesn't hurt to crowd them a bit.
The directions may say place 12" apart
but I put them much closer to make the container nice and full.
If you use good soil, and feed them every few weeks
(which I forget to do mostly)
they don't mind being a bit crowded.
not to let potted plants dry out in hot weather.
Containers (especially terra cotta) dry out quite quickly.
During a hot spell, you may have to water every day.
During a super super hot spell, twice a day!
Wow, I can run on when it comes to plants!
If you made it this far, thanks for reading,
and do visit Inspiration Avenue this weekend to
check the list of all the party participants
who have some wonderful tutorials on their blogs!
Go create a work of art with plants!
