Planting Urns & Pots

            Many people at this time of year are putting the finishing touches on their landscaping by planting up urns, flower boxes, assorted pails, barrels, even old shoes with annual flowers.

            What to plant is rarely in need of help; if you need something that grows in the shade you look for the shade cloth covered part of the nursery or garden center, sun loving plants are not in this shady part of the store. Once in the desired light or shade department the flowers generally sell themselves.

            It would be wise to read the tags placed in each of the plant trays to find out all the pertinent information; like how tall and wide do they get, how far apart they should be planted, do they like wet/moist/or dry soil, and what their true light requirements are.

            Now comes the soil that goes into your pot/barrel/box or shoe.

            Since worms are not good jumpers or climbers you will need a soil mix that stays soft and airy; a soil type mix that resembles the subterranean activity of the common earthworm. This is where “potting soil” comes in; in fact it is not a soil at all; you will read on the bag “Soilless Mix”. What’s in this mix is half peat moss, half vermiculite or perlite, and sometimes a little bit of ground limestone. The reason being is that this combination will not compact into a hard lump of concrete like dirt can when devoid of worms.

            Side Note: This is why you don’t want to kill off the worms when trying to get rid of the                                           moles.

            This soilless mix also makes the pot/barrel/box or shoe a lot lighter to carry when full. If you have large or deep pots, fill the bottom half with a block of Styrofoam or packing peanuts; most roots do not need to go more than 4 to 6 inch during this very short time of being in your pot/barrel/box or shoe.

            Watering will be most every day on account of it being a rather porous mixture. There are additives you can mix into this soilless mix to help it retain moisture longer, just ask at the flower store.

If you have any questions feel free to e-mail me at NiemeyerLandscaping@Gmail.com or post a comment on this Blog. And like us on Facebook at Niemeyer Landscaping. For more Landscape and garden info and pictures on the subject check us out at www.NiemeyerLandscaping.com