Little Plants Play Big Parts

It’s nice to have big beds filled with splashy color and crazy textures, but sometimes time, space and energy run low. You still want the good looks, but you don’t crave the work.

Photo: Nurseries offer an almost endless selection of pots, urns, tubs and baskets.

It’s been a great spring for petunias. They’ll soon give way to the heat, but they’re easily replaced when they’re grown in containers.

I decided to “think small” in today’s garden feature. Small plants for small spaces. These are little landscapings just to show you how much fun a minimalistic planting can be.

 

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I’ve been a sucker for coleus in containers since I decorated my in-laws’ house for our wedding reception almost 50 years ago! (I think I told you that just a week or two ago here.)

I have this low pot filled with pink pentas and Victoria salvias alongside a path to our backyard.

I use a lot of variegated peperomias in various parts of our landscape. Here they flank a ground-level gazing ball.

Photo: Even fruit growers can get in on the container gardening craze. Dwarf peaches can be grown in 24-inch patio pots for many years. You may not feed all the relatives from just one tree, but it will be a fine conversation starter for those patio parties.

Photo: Repetition of pots of angelonia look great on garden steps.

Photo: You don’t have to have big masses of color to generate a lot of visual interest from your patio garden. Succulents add a rare blend of odd textures and growth forms to the Sperry home deck. Click image for larger view.

Posted by Neil Sperry
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