Those lacking a green thumb — and/or a back yard — share one critical thing in common with those more gifted in these regards: the possibility of coaxing something glorious out of a pretty pot.
“Everyone can do it,” says Nancy Clifton, horticultural specialist at the Chicago Botanic Garden in Glencoe, where she has taught hundreds of novices and experienced gardeners alike in classes focused on container gardening for all seasons. It is a topic, she says, that is booming in popularity — perhaps because container gardening is so inclusive.
For the devoted gardener, a container can be a mini-laboratory for experimenting with plant and color combinations and for making “a statement without a great expense,” Clifton says.
For apartment- and condo-dwellers and “those who are physically challenged and don’t have the dexterity to get on their hands and knees,” Clifton says, containers on the balcony or patio are buckets of hope. They make digging in the dirt possible still.
And for those who count themselves among the gardening enthusiasts of the world (people who love the idea of blooms bursting at their doorstep, but don’t particularly love the work involved) container gardening is an answer — and perhaps the start of something.
(Jayson Home & Garden in Chicago, serving the Clybourn Corridor and Lincoln Park crowd, does big business with “enthusiasts.” It offers a container service, in which a crew will be dispatched to a client’s home, balcony or rooftop with a load of flowers and gardening goods to plant existing containers. Or the crew will sweep in with a slew of pots — chosen by the customer — planted and ready to go. Cost for the service runs $75 an hour with a minimum of $150 in time and $250 in materials. Additional house calls — perhaps to spruce up the containers for a special party or to replace the summer planting with an autumn display of mums and asters — are at the customer’s request; the same fees apply. “We had a couple hundred clients last year,” says Patrick Murphy, landscape designer and horticulturist at Jayson Garden Design.)
Whoever, whatever your interest in actually dirtying your fingernails, the process of getting flowers, foliage, herbs, vegetables, ornamental trees and even tropical plants (they’re the “fashionable trend” right now, Murphy says) to thrive on your hardscape starts with a few great pots.
And there are plenty to choose from these days — from the heaviest concrete, stone and cast iron urns to their newfangled and lighter-weight alternatives in composites, polyresins, plastic and fiberglass.
There are Zenful stoneware pots that wear their colorful glazes like liquid robes and there are Modern zinc vessels.
Copper, galvanized steel, terrazzo, wood and, of course, earthy terra cotta — all make for viable containers. And for those with visions of Tuscan farmhouses . . . who simply must have terra cotta despite the pain of dragging those temperamental pots inside for the winter, there is now frost-resistant terra cotta that is said to withstand a mild Chicago winter (no chipping, cracking), provided you remove the soil. (There also is a new breed of frost-resistant stoneware.)
The “right pot” will have a hole in the bottom or an easy way to drill one, according to Clifton and Murphy. Both say stagnant water is the most formidable threat to a successful container planting.
Other than that, it’s all about personal preference — and a few minor guidelines.
Like: Be wary of cheap plastic pots, Murphy says. “Lightweight plastic breaks down even with the sunlight. It gets very brittle.”
But then again, a good plastic or polyresin pot will stay moist longer than a terra cotta one, Clifton says.
When you need a large container for visual impact or to hold a large planting, but you don’t need all that weight, Clifton recommends filling the bottom of a big container with nonbiodegradable foam chips. Contain them in a plastic bag so they don’t float up to the top of the pot. Other recyclables will do the job, too, including plastic milk jugs, washed out and turned upside down.
For tight spaces (small patios and balconies), Murphy likes round containers because they are easy to move and negotiate.
He recommends that pots be at least 18 inches tall if they will be sitting on the ground. Otherwise, they will get lost visually. And he likes groupings of odd numbers of pots. It frees you from having to worry about symmetry and other formalities that come with even numbers.
Clifton likes front-of-the-house planters to be at least 17 inches across the top, running about 13 inches tall — also for visual oomph.
And if you’re potting an ornamental tree, “make sure the container is heavy enough that it will help the patio tree stay upright and stable and not blow around as the wind catches the plant,” Murphy says. A stone, cast iron or well-constructed wooden container would be a good choice, because these materials don’t fracture if they freeze, Murphy adds. That means you would not have to repot the tree in some other container for the winter. Murphy also advises choosing one that is big enough to allow room for insulation material on the inside of the container to protect the soils.
Insulation material (which to the lay gardener can be nothing more than foam insulation) also should be used to wrap the inside walls of all metal containers, since they can become very hot, Murphy says. That will help keep the soil temperature consistent.
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Pot-pourri
A few products and ideas to make container gardening easier and more successful:
Wilt-Pruf
This anti-transpirant can be sprayed on the leaves of some annuals and flowering shrubs to help them retain moisture. “It gives them a little protective coating like a sunblock in the summer and Chapstick in the winter,” says Patrick Murphy of Jayson Garden Design in Chicago. He and his crew spray it on plants as a protective measure during transplanting or transporting. But it’s also a boon for container gardens, which tend to dry out quickly, Murphy says. Wilt-Pruf is non-toxic and has the side benefit of making leaves look nice and glossy. A 1-quart spray bottle costs $16.50 at Jayson Home & Garden, 1885 N. Clybourn Ave., 773-248-8180, and at other garden centers and nurseries.
Water-holding soil
A handy helper in the quest to keep containers moist is soil that comes premixed with gelatinlike crystals that help the soil hold moisture. The caveat: Don’t let this special soil get bone dry, Murphy says. Those crystals will dry up. And you will be left with mighty expensive, regular ol’ potting soil. A 9.6-pound bag (16 dry quarts) of the Schultz brand MoisturePlus potting mix costs $11 at Jayson Home & Garden. Other garden centers also carry water-holding soils.
Ready to roll
For those who want a Modern container garden with a privacy wall to boot, Chicago furniture designer Michael Heltzer has an answer. His Woven Trellis System allows gardeners to hang a range of accessories — including a handsome stainless-steel planter — from either side of the (teak or cedar) screen. Also available are four sizes of planters that sit on the concrete, blue stone, teak or cedar base. The system comes in mobile and stationary versions and starts at $1,500 at the Heltzer showroom, 1800 Merchandise Mart, 312-527-3010, or visit www.heltzer.com.
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Want to learn more about container gardens?
Here are some good places to turn for more information about growing in containers:
Events
May 14: Urban gardeners looking to expand their knowledge of the container genre might want to check out “An Evening of City Gardening” at Old Town’s Dinotto Ristorante, 215 W. North Ave. Local gardening experts, including Geena Javid, a horticulturist from Old Town Gardens, will show how to grow flowers, herbs and vegetables in pots–and in the smallest of spaces. Hours: 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. Cost: free, includes complimentary hors d’oeuvres and non-alcoholic beverages. Space is limited to 50 people; reservations are recommended. Parking is available in a lot across the street or valet at the door. Call 312-202-0302.
Classes
May 27: Marcy Lautanen-Raleigh will teach “An Ornamental Herb Pot,” from 7 to 9 p.m. at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. Cost: $27 (includes parking). Call: 630-719-2468 or see www.mortonarb.org/education/index.htm.
June 7: Frontera Grill head gardener Sara Steedman and Master Gardener Amber Kim will give a free demonstration on succession planting — growing several crops in one season in the same pot — from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Garfield Park Conservatory, 300 N. Central Park Ave. Call: 312-742-7529.
June 12 and 13: Jennifer Brennan will lead a Summer Container Workshop from 6:30 to 8 p.m. June 12 and 10 to 11:30 a.m. June 13 at the Chalet Nursery & Garden shops, 3132 Lake Ave., Wilmette. Cost: $39.99 (includes pot). Call 847-256-0561, ext. 225.
June 14: Nancy Clifton will teach a class on “Gardening in Containers” from 1 to 3 p.m. at the Chicago Botanic Garden, 1000 Lake Cook Rd., Glencoe. Cost: $30 (includes parking). Call: 847-835-8261 or see www.chicagobotanic.org/Education.html.
Sources
– The University of Illinois Extension’s “Top Tips for Great-Looking Containers” are at www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/container.
– Renee’s Garden, a seed company, offers advice at www.reneesgarden.com/articles/container.html.
– Extensive advice is available from a Canadian gardening portal at http://ourgardengang.tripod.com/containerveggies.htm.
– Gardener’s Supply Co. sells planters with water reservoirs, drip-irrigation systems, water-absorbing crystals and other container-gardening products. The Web site also has substantial information under “News, Tips & Info.” See www.gardeners.com or, for catalog, call 888-833-1412.
— Karen Klages and Beth Botts
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On the cover
Here is information on the pots shown on our cover. All the plantings were done by Patrick Murphy, a landscape designer and horticulturist at Jayson Garden Design in Chicago.
1. White ruffled square planter (shown upended) is made of a glazed stoneware. The one shown is quite large at 19 inches square and 22 inches tall, although smaller sizes are available. This one costs $143.75 (12-inch-tall version, $43; 17 inches, $100.50) at Gethsemane Garden Center, 5739 N. Clark St., 773-878-5915.
2. Kyoto cement birdbath makes an unusual and challenging container for plants. It stands 16 inches wide by 12 inches deep by 8 1/2 inches tall–with a planting depth of only 1 1/2 inches. Murphy filled it with Irish moss and river stones. And unfilled Kyoto costs $95 at Jayson Home & Garden, 1885 N. Clybourn Ave., 773-248-8180.
3. Grand Garden Urn (round) is made from a sturdy fiberglass that is not nearly as heavy as cement or stone. It measures 13 inches tall and 24 inches in diameter and is planted with mixed pansies, kale, annual stock and tropical dracaena, which Murphy says “can get huge and glorious and loves neglect.” The urn (product number GSU002) costs $145 from Martha Stewart: The Catalog for Living, 800-950-7130. Or visit www.marthastewart.com/catalog.
4. Santavase with the spiral screw base and metal holder from the Serralunga Pot Collection, designed by architects and designers from Italy, is made from a lightweight thermoplastic that is said to be weather- and UV-resistant. It holds a dwarf Alberta spruce surrounded by mixed pansies. Santavase (product number AQ1893) measures 34 inches high with a diameter of 16 inches. It costs $175; the metal support (product number AQ1894) costs $55 from the Design Within Reach catalog; call 800-944-2233 or visit www.dwr.com.
5. Fluted terra cotta planter measures a very large — and heavy — 23 inches tall by 21 inches round and costs $154.95 at Gethsemane Garden Center, 5739 N. Clark St., 773-878-5915. It comes in two smaller sizes: 14 inches tall, $77.95; 18 inches tall, $142.95. The planter shown holds pansies, kale and white bacopa.
— Karen Klages
