The deck planters are starting to look good. The tropicals love the heat and the annuals have settled in. Last year I had some big grasses in the three main planters, but the winter was too much and they didn’t make it, so this year I returned to my roots and stuffed the pots full with my favorite all summer plantings.
‘Tropicana’ canna, black sweet potatoes, million bells, and a New Guinea impatient fill this pot. Some ‘red rocket’ snapdragons fill in the back. I’ve never done the snapdragons before but right now they look great….. We’ll see how they last in the heat.
For some reason red was the color of choice this year. Usually I don’t buy most of the plantings and just use over wintered stuff, but this year I treated myself to a nursery run. 33% off helps and if you buy it all on one day I guess a red mood will give you red plantings.
This one has similar plants with the cannas replaced by a nice new coleus and burgundy fountain grass in the center.
The aloe pot here was overwintered, but the red blooms on the dipladenia are new. Not to rub it in but I think I found it for about $2 at a local greenhouse clearance and I hope to overwinter it for next year.
Here’s a new coleus, overwintered geranium, and a pot of blue fanflower/red celosia combo. The celosia is ‘new look’ celosia and I really like the bright flowers and dark foliage.
Herbs have a spot too; parsley, rosemary and a pot of annual vinca for color.
Here’s one pot that I’m not yet thrilled with. It should have a pink ‘Alice Dupont’ mandevilla climbing up the bamboo stakes, but for some reason she won’t grow…. She blooms well, but won’t grow. It was an impulse buy at a box store and looked great, but is no bigger today than it was the day I brought it home. I can’t help but wonder if it was treated with something to trigger blooming at the expense of new growth. Does anyone have an opinion on that?
There’s a chartreuse sweet potato that may step up and take over, and also an ‘Australia’ canna coming in…. But I really like mandevillas 🙂
Oh and a big basil that’s just about worn out its welcome. I never thought it would take off like that.
So that’s the news from the deck. I’ve been away for about a week so things have hopefully grown some since, but I’m pleased with the results so far. Yes, a little yellow might have brightened things up a bit, but my planting are always a little impulsive, so each year turns out a little different. Who knows, maybe next year all the grass will be back, or cannas will take over, we’ll see!
Category Archives: deck plantings
That wasn’t smart 2.0
They (whoever they may be) say you should have a theme to your blog. I thought it was gardening, but maybe I overestimated myself. Maybe a better theme would be stupid things I do while in the garden.
This week’s stupid move was breaking the brand new terra cotta pots when I put them down in the garage. Crack and $15 dollars goes down the drain. Total enjoyment at home time: 10 minutes. Luckily only the bottom (most expensive) pot was broken, I wonder if I could glue it. I needed the pot for the last of my deck annuals, but it looks like I’ll have to wait till next year. This was it for the annual pot budget…..
When all resolve is lost
There were already a couple strikes against me. It was the first weekend in June, there was finally some steady rain to get things growing, most of my growlight seedlings are in the ground, I prepped the deck planters…… and then the kiss of death, a 33% off sale at my favorite greenhouse, Kettel’s Greenhouse in Falls Pa (check the link to their facebook page for current info). With the exception of shrubs and trees, they grow all their stuff on site in their own greenhouses. When it’s gone it’s gone, so waiting for the clearance sale is a little risky if you need something specific, but that’s not me….. plus I was already there once in April 🙂 …. Here’s what I got for under $40.
Apparently I was in a red mood yesterday. A little yellow would have been a good idea, but so goes the moment. Celosia ‘new look’, new guinea impatiens, and snapdragons are going to be new this year but the rest are planter standards. Usually I don’t get this much but the prices were great, the plants looked perfect, and I was rewarding myself for surviving a morning full of surprise furniture moving and bedroom painting.
I think I’m in denial over all the coleus cuttings, canna roots, and other overwintered goodies that also need to come out and get planted. I’ll figure it out soon enough. In the meantime there’s a nice Christmas display happening on the deck steps. Overwintered amaryllis and recovering asparagus fern. Happy holidays!
sorta like suburbia 