I honestly don't need more plants. But does that stop me from bringing plants home nearly every time I visit a garden center? Of course not! There's something about spring that compels me to bring home, if not every pretty thing I see, at least a good number of them. When I visited Roger's Gardens last week, my goal was to find plants to fill a large terracotta pot in a partial shade location. Well, as I confessed in
last Friday's post, I brought home plenty of plants but nothing appropriate for that pot. So I went to my local garden center and came home with more plants!
This time I started with a specific vision in mind, inspired by a pot shown in White Flower Farm's spring catalog.
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| This is a pot in the Hummingbird Annual Collection that inspired me (photo source here) |
I didn't recreate White Flower Farm's pot but I let it guide me. Here's my version:
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| I wanted foliage and flower color that would complement the plants in the adjoining bed, including the Grevillea alpina x rosmarianifolia and Agonis flexuosa 'Nana' |
The plants are all still small but I'm fairly pleased with it. The
Fuchsia I used,
'Gartenmeister Bonstedt', has orange flowers and should handle the morning sun in this location. Instead of using a lime-green sweet potato vine (
Ipomoea batatas) like the one in the inspiration pot, I selected a lime coleus and a chartreuse-flowered Euphorbia, which my experience shows will hold up better under my conditions than the potato vine. I filled in with more coleus, a mirror plant, and a shrimp plant.
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| Clockwise from the upper left, the pot contains: Fuchsia triphylla 'Gartenmeister Bonstedt'; 3 coleus (Plectranthus scutellarioides) cultivars, 'Campfire', 'Indian Summer', and 'Salsa Verde'; Coprosma repens 'Evening Glow'; Euphorbia 'Dean's Hybrid'; and Justicia brandegeana |
All of last week's purchases from Roger's have been planted as well.
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| The Lisianthus (Eustoma grandiflorum) plugs are outshone by the foliage of Pelargonium 'Oldbury Duet' here but they should settle in quickly |
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| The orange and red Freesia planted in the bed alongside the fountain have been traded out for the blue varieties I bought last week. I moved the orange and red flowered varieties to a more appropriate location. Maybe I should start buying my Freesia in bud from now on to ensure my color choices... |
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| Salvia 'Love and Wishes' found a sunny spot in the back border (which required digging up and dividing a large clump of society garlic, Tulbaghia violacea) |
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| Scabiosa 'Fama Blue' evicted a couple of poorly performing plants to nab another sunny spot |
The annual California poppy and Ageratum plugs were also tucked into the garden and, with everything I bought last week now planted, I'm feeling rather virtuous. Now, if I only can avoid going crazy at the Cactus & Succulent Society sale scheduled this weekend at the local botanic garden...
All material © 2012-2018 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party
That container's going to be beautifully mobbed, I bet!
ReplyDeleteScabiosas are probably my favorite plant I've never grown. I think of them as liking cooler temps, but maybe not if they're happy in SoCal? For sure I'd need to ensure better drainage in this clay...
Scabiosas have been short-lived perennials in my garden thus far, Nell, but I keep trying them in new areas, trying to find one where they do really well. My local botanic garden just 5 miles away has a massive display of them and they flower for a long period every year.
DeleteWFF's catalog gives lots of inspiration with their container designs. I've made a few myself. We have a great local supplier whose own designs are inspirational, too. It'll be a while before I'll be planting, if these storms keep coming through. Three more in succession between Thurs. and Monday. I guess winter isn't yet over. At least it is precipitation, right?
ReplyDeleteI think even I might have a problem smiling in response to yet another storm in your area, Eliza. I'm sure winter's hold on the eastern part of the country is getting downright tiresome!
DeleteNice riff on the WFF pot! I should run to Rogers and buy up the 'Dean's Hybrid' euphorb -- I'm seeing big, beautiful clumps around town.
ReplyDelete'Dean's Hybrid' has performed very well in my garden, Denise. Be forewarned that, like a lot of Euphorbias, it does like to move around. FYI, my recent purchases came from Armstrong, not Roger's. Roger's may have them in stock too, although off-hand I don't recall seeing them on my last visit.
DeleteThe new pot looks great, Kris. The coleus plants add wonderful variegated colour. I never think to plant them here and they would have to be annuals if I did. I know what you mean about unnecessarily buying at nurseries-even if they don’t have what I went there for, I still come out with something!
ReplyDeleteI used coleus a lot in my former shady garden, Jane, but haven't done so in my current garden, which is generally hotter, drier and more wind-blown. I'm hoping the spot I've chosen will be shady and protected enough to allow them to thrive.
DeleteI share your problem. Head out with a specific plan in mind and come home without it but some other plant. I too loved those pots in that catalogue but I don't seem to be very good at recreating. I should take the catalogue with me. Your combination is lovely but then I would expect this of someone who makes such beautiful arrangements. Will your creation last throughout the summer and fall? Scabiosas do really well here and are in full bloom here. All the ones I have are rescues from Lowes. I keep popping in there to see if they have putt any on the rescue shelf!
ReplyDeleteWith sufficient protection from excessive sun and wind, coleus will hold up through fall and sometimes, well into winter. (I've got one plant in my new lath house that I nursed through the winter months.) The Fuchsia, Coprosma and Justicia should be perennial here if given sufficient water.
DeleteIt turned out beautiful. Don't feel bad about not sticking to a no more plants regime. This doesn't work with gardeners.
ReplyDeleteI can cut myself some slack in spring, Lisa - it's during the summer months I really need to exercise more discipline but I usually don't...
DeleteKris, that new pot looks gorgeous!The combination is stunning!
ReplyDeleteThanks MDN!
DeleteBeautiful job on the planter, Kris! (Not that I'm surprised given what you can do with flower arranging...) That Euphorbia is really intriguing. I don't think I've seen that one up here - at least not yet. In less than two weeks is our Hortlandia sale. This is the one where specialty nurseries from near and far gather to hawk their wares. It's an event not to be missed - EVER! Like you, I really don't need any more plants, but I know - once I'm there - I will be gripped by the fever...
ReplyDeleteHow I'd love to attend your Hortlandia sale! One day, I will, even if the cost of travel (not to speak of the challenges of getting anything I might buy home) is a bit prohibitive.
DeleteIf it makes you feel any better my garden is substantially smaller than yours, but I keep buying too! You should see my stash of things to be planted. It’s a mini nursery!
ReplyDeleteMy cutting garden is now feeling a bit like a mini-nursery too, Loree. I just potted up most of my dahlias to give them a chance to get growing while awaiting space in the raised planters.
DeleteGoodmorning Kris,
ReplyDeleteTears are in my eyes. Not from crying but from laughing because I recognize myself in your words. Every time I am telling myself not to buy any roses anymore but I can't stop it. And for me, as an owner of a very small garden, it's very hard to visit a gardencentre because I want to take so many plants with me but I don't have the space to plant them (lol). Lovely colorfull vieuws out of your garden.
Have a wonderful day.
Rosehugs Marijke
You should see all the seed packets I've accumulated, just waiting for space to get them started, Marijke! I need a basement with grow lights or a small greenhouse but basements are uncommon here in earthquake country and there's no space for a greenhouse...
DeleteEveryone needs more plants Kris; when there's no space left in the garden, pots are the answer! Love your borrowed design. That's what the catalogues are for, after all.
ReplyDeleteIt's funny how that one image from White Flower Farm's catalog stuck with me. Of course, I think they've used that same photo for years!
DeleteOne of the joys of spring, plant shopping!!
ReplyDeletePlant shopping is a joy. Finding spots to put them once you get them home is a challenge!
DeleteWelcome to plantaholocs anonymous, Kris. It's impressive that all your new purchases are planted already and that surely means that you need to buy even more plants. Your pot combination is really beautiful!
ReplyDeleteShh, don't tell anyone, Peter - I've already have bought more plants. Just a couple...
DeleteLooks good. Your new shade house can be a refuge when it gets too hot. The salvia looks happy and beautiful in that spot.
ReplyDeleteSES (Spring Euphoria Syndrome) is pretty bad here, too. Went to Village last week--that was a mistake...
SES is SO much nicer a way to describe it than "plant addiction"! Mine is in full fury, I'm afraid.
DeleteSES - I like that. In this hemisphere I'm enjoying AES, or as you Americans would say, FES. That Scabiosa is beautiful, I need to make room for a few of them in my garden. It was interesting to see the model for the pot. Yours does look different, but the colour scheme is the same. Happy shopping.
ReplyDeleteWe experience FES too, Sue, although the temperatures sometimes don't cool until early November here.
Delete