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How to Do English Garden Containers ©

Posted: Thursday, January 12, 2006

by Arlene Wright-Correll
http://www.learn-america.com

It took me 5 full years to develop a true English Garden and by that time I had just turned 70 years old, my two teen grandchildren grew up and went into the service, the local teen helpers I was able to previously hire also left their homes. There was no one left but me and my garden was getting away from me.

Basically my English garden is not just one garden it is about 5 or 6 of them spread out all over Home Farm Herbery.

After that last frustrating summer and the beginning spring of the next year, I decided to cement over the main cottage garden in the rear of our home. I was able to hire the last 2 teens in our neighborhood to help with about 8 days of cleaning out areas and running the cement mixer. Eight days was all I could get because one of the brothers was leaving for college, so we were working like crazy.

The main idea was to develop an area where I could put in as many containers that would give me the same wonderful feeling I had enjoyed in the previous years, but with a lot less work.

When the work was completed, I started on my English container garden and it was a joy last summer. Now we are in the middle of winter and I am thinking about spring again and what would go into the containers.

I had thought I could save many of the containers and their contents by putting them into the greenhouse with heat lights. That worked fine until we had a tornado hit Munfordville village about 5 miles from here. It did about 4.4 million dollars of damage and the side winds that we got, took a big chunk of our greenhouse roof, thus letting in the cold air and destroying all those lovely pots of flowers.

This has caused me to seriously consider giving up gardening, but I just cannot. So here I am again looking at the catalogs and thinking about what can go into containers to give me back my English garden look.

For those of you considering the same type of garden here are some of the plants I am considering for 2006.

For sunny spots that get the sun all day long I am going to try some of the following:

Achillea
Agapanthus bulbs
Antirrhinums
Argyranthemum
Brachycomes tiny daisy like flowers
Diascia fetcaniensis
Feverfew
Herb plants with silvery leaves e.g. Rosemary
English Lavender , I have several big tubs of them, beside some in the ground that are several years old, but there and many of my favorites from the many varieties available, so I will put some more in. The best varieties to grow if you are making potpourri are L.Angustifolia Munstead, deep purple and growing 12 to 18 inches and is often considered the best one! L.Angustifolia - Hidcote, which grows to 24 inches

L.Angustifolia - Folgate, which grows to 20 inches.
Nemesia
Nepeta or catmint
Pale flowered pelargoniums
Penstemon the paler flowered varieties
Petunias
Pinks that will add a marvelous scent to your display
Salvias
Sedum spectabile will attract butterflies
Sutera cordata hangs down over the edges of your pots
Sweet peas- dwarf ones
Trailing Verbenas to hang down over the sides of the pots
And of course those lovely, lovely geraniums in all different variety.

For containers that will be place in places that get a half day of sun I am going to consider the following:

Aquilegias or Grannies bonnets
Astrantias
Cornflowers
Forget me nots
Fuchsias
Nigella or Love in a Mist
Roses
Scabious
Trailing Lobelias
Violas

For places that will receive light shade most of the day I will fill my pots with the following:

Places that are in light shade all day

Begonias
Ferns
Heucheras
Lily of the Valley
Nicotiana

This year I will consider some climbers in pots and some of them will be

Clematis the shorter varieties
Climbing roses not rambling roses which are too vigorous
Ipomoea
Lonerica periclyemenum
Sweetpeas - Lathyrus odoratus- good for scent

Because this year I will not have a vegetable garden, I will consider a few pots of tomatoes, and some other veggies.

I did enjoy the less work last summer for the containers I did make up. There were about 30 of them. However, they still require watering, a little more fertilizing than the gardens did and small weeding out, because no matter what you do, wherever there is a square inch of vacant dirt, a weed will find its way in.

Well, I am looking forward to the warm sun and the dirty hands and perhaps repairing the greenhouse. Happy Gardening!

"Tread the Earth Lightly" and in the meantime may your day be filled with.Peace, light and love,

Arlene Wright-Correll

She is the author of many books which can be seenhere

Email askarlene@scrtc.com

About the Author & Artist. Arlene Wright-Correll (1935- ___), popular American award winning Artist, published author, columnist, & is the resident art instructor for Avalon Stained Glass School, at the age of 68, decided to pick up her paint brushes again after 54 years and paint. She is a cancer and stroke survivor who is able to strive forward each and everyday to welcome the beauty of this small planet. She also is a China & Porcelain painter, Sandblasting & Etching, Stained Glass & fused glass Artisan. She is one of the six KY Artists who worked 6 months to create the dolls for Journey Jots in 2006 and a Smithsonian Institute art exhibit in 2008. Her published books can be found here . She is also a featured writer for GreenThumbArticles.com and teaches Art Vacation Holidays at Avalon Stained Glass School and Creativity Center.

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