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Boxes, Barrels, Pots and Hangers
Last year a customer called in a panic... seems
as if she had suddenly decided to
put her house on the market and needed a "quick
fix" to make it more marketable. Things just didn't look so
appealing,: weeds, overgrown shrubs, front door uninviting.
What to do? And in a hurry!
And with that message, container gardening was
the obvious solution. The American market for container
gardens has leaped a healthy 50% in sales at garden
centers and brings the garden much closer to
the front door, the patio, and the driveway.
If you are as busy as the soccer moms, the
Little League dads, the college-visiting
parents and the spring fling in general, you
will welcome the beautiful baskets in full
bloom, just waiting to be carried home to your
front entrance. Even the standard, expected, late-season cold
spell can be endured with a smile if you aren't depending on
having your own annuals in bloom. (A double-edged sword for
the garden centers,
however, because warm sunshine boosts sales and
loosens the wallets.)
Are you in doubt about a particular favorite
plant surviving in your yard? Planting it in a tub near the
warm walls of your south-facing fence or in the protected
patio will give you a chance to watch it up
front and close. Does it require more than a
zone change? Or more shade than you have? You
can give it a trial run without losing two or three years'
wait. How about wanting a ripe tomato fresh every day, instead
of a
weekly supply that you purchase ahead of time?
Not to worry, a mini-garden of a few
lush tomato plants, complete with visible
blossoms and vigorous foliage—even a few
basil plants tucked in—will provide you with
pleasure AND nutrition.
New designs in pottery dress up those heavy,
archaic and mineral-encrusted old
pots. Simulated bronze with the patina one
finds on a 19th Century garden statue is available at
fractions of the cost. Or do you have a rusted out baby
bathtub from by-gone
years? Perfect for those trailing plants
color-coordinated with the old blue or yellow.
One neighbor who lives without a scrap of a
yard but has a rooftop handy to her
porch fills it with a remarkable garden center
all her own. She confides that she spends "plenty" on the
colorful and beautiful display, but admits that she needs to
water things
more frequently. (A great idea to come down the
pike is a ceramic pot with a secret
reservoir which provides water on demand. They
are expensive, but gives you the chance
to forget the watering for days.)
Do I practice what I preach? Not really. I'm still devoted to
digging in the dirt,
waiting, spreading out, and enjoying that sunshine on my
shoulders.
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