Summer has finally arrived in the Midwest and after a cold and seemingly endless winter it has been so much fun to be able to fill my urns and planters with colorful annuals and not have to worry (too much) that I'll be running out every night to cover them to protect them from frost. This year, my color scheme consists of cool colors: blue, purple and white.
My planters are primarily in East-facing locations which means that they're protected from the hottest part of the afternoon sun so I can use things like Hydrangea and ferns along with things that like full sun like geraniums. This year, I filled them with "spillers" (ivy, creeping jenny, licorice plant and petunias) "fillers" (ferns, geraniums, ageratum and variegated sage) and "thrillers" ("Endless Summer" hydrangea and agapanthus).
When I plant urns and planters, I work from the outside edges to the center of the container. This allows me to ensure that the "spiller" plants are placed to the very edges of the container and the "thriller" plant sits at the top of the arrangement which is mounded up as I build from the outside.
When I fill the large urn near my front door, I lay the "spillers" on their sides and then gradually straighten the subsequent layers of plants until the very center ring of plants stands upright. This gives the urn arrangement a nice round shape. The main two main things to remember when choosing plants for urns and containers is that they should have similar sunlight requirements and similar water requirements. Most of what I've planted likes lots of water...except for the geraniums which I plant simply because I love them.
In "other news", I think that my plant color choices for this year may have had just a little color influence from a very special event that took place a week ago.....
My oldest graduated from college and I had yet another "proud mom moment". There was much to celebrate and I was thrilled to be there to share it with him and to have a chance to acknowledge his hard work and dedication. I can't believe that his days as an academic are over....Wow! That was fast!
Back in the garden, I have two small pots left to plant today then it's on to planting my edible garden! For now, I'm enjoying the cool blues and greens of this year's summer urns and planters and the warmer weather that has finally arrived. Not that I'm rushing the season, but I'm already planning space in my garden for the hydrangea, creeping jenny and ivy so that they will have a "forever home" in a place other than my compost bin when the season is over.
Summer's here!
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