6/29/2016
Container Series: Is There an Echo in Here?
Kylee Baumle
One of the many wonderful things about summer in the garden is that I get to play with Persian Shield again. This year’s container will go in a location that gets morning sun and has dappled shade beginning just after midday. Such a location allows me a little more freedom of choice as to what its container mates will be.
So I took my pot of Persian Shield and walked around the garden center, much like I do when I’m at the mall and I’m trying to put together an outfit. Gardening can be an exercise in fashion with plants, no?
It didn’t take long for this, that and the other to start popping out at me, because like I said, this plant goes with so many things. My biggest problem was narrowing it down to just a few.
CARE TIPS:
Though most potting soils that consumers use today already contain plant food, watering schedules in the heat of summer will wash much of it away. Plants can become leggy and bloom performance may suffer. A light pruning of the Million Bells, along with the use of a fertilizer specifically for blooms, will help keep the container looking good through frost.
ABOUT THAT CONTAINER:
Clever containers can be expensive, but obviously, they don’t have to be. Garage sale or flea market much? Give employees the go-ahead with a maximum budget per container and let them be your eyes when they’re out and about. This combination is planted in an old cream separator vessel that I found in a family member’s barn. It was in decent shape, nice and heavy, with a drainage hole already in the bottom, and as soon as I saw it, I wanted it for my patio. It only needed a coat of some rust-preventing paint in hammered bronze and it was good to go.
PLANTS:
Persian Shield (
Strobilanthes dyerianus)
African Daisy (Osteospermum Serenity Pink)
Million Bells (Calibrachoa Can-Can Purple Star)
Diamond Frost Euphorbia
Kylee Baumle is a garden writer, blogs at ourlittleacre.com and is co-author of “Indoor Plant Decor: The Design Stylebook for Houseplants.” Contact her at ourlittleacre@gmail.com or on Facebook.