Growing perennial flowers in containers is one of the easiest ways of maintaining continuous color throughout the season. Perennials flower each year and so save you the chore of replanting that is required with annuals. In addition growing in planters allows you to move them around so that the ones in bloom can receive pride of place. I came across an article by Scott Gray over on the Gardening Launch Pad website in which he explains how to choose the best perennials for your location and the type of planters to use.
Have the best looking planters in your neighborhood! By knowing your climate zone and choosing the right planters, you can have beautiful flowers most of the year round.
Perennials plus planters equals beautiful flowers for all four seasons. Perennials are great for planters as they come back every year which reduces thecost of having to replant annuals every year. Perennials also multiply, so you don’t need to continually add plants to your planters. In fact, you may have to thin out your plants rather than having to add to them.
Choosing the right perennials is important, particularly if you are short on space, money or time-this is because the plants will multiply and you may need larger pots at some point.
There are different perennials for shade and sun, and plenty that grow throughout the summer, spring, and fall-some examples include:
- Summer (shade): hostas, bellflower, astilbe
- Spring (shade): astilbe, lady’s mantle, bergenia, bellflower
- Summer (sun) shasta daisy, phlox, spike speedwell, orange coneflower, liatris
- Spring (sun): delphinium
- All season (sun): marguerite
- Irises, tulips are great perennials, which the bulbs should be planted in the late summer/early fall for spring/summer blooms.
The best bet to figure out what will work in your area is to take a trip to your local nursery or gardening center. They will stock different types of perennials that are geared for the climatic zone you live in and can offer advice about when to plant and what grows best where.
If you like to order your perennials, make sure you do your research and ensure that you know the climatic zone you live in and the types of perennials that work best in your area. A little online research can often result in a wealth of information.
See more at Gardening Launch Pad
Image source: Bradley Gordon
