Pot Up a Tropical Treasure
As an entryway welcomer or a garden centerpiece, this flashy trio of tropical beauties offer flowers and
foliage all summer. Start with a large pot and place a Majesty
palm at center stage. Then flank this fountain of foliage with flowering pink tropical hibiscus and red mandevilla. The mandevilla will cascade over the edges of
the container as the summer progresses.
PLANTING TIP: Experiment with the color scheme by selecting tropical hibiscus in a multitude of flashy colors
including yellow, fuchsia, white, orange, and red. Mandevilla
produces trumpet-shape flowers in white, red, yellow, and pink.
Plant Petal Power
Plant a little sunshine! This bold container is filled with cheery
sunflowers which offer big yellow-orange petals surrounding nut-brown centers. Sunflowers, also known as helianthus, offer continuous flowers all summer long.
Surround them with yellow bidens, a smaller petaled annual and
starry white pentas. Trailing sweet potato vine and creeping Jenny offers tresses of foliage.
PLANTING TIP: Container plantings need more water than plants that grow in the ground. Make sure to water regularly
(check daily in hot weather) or use a drip emitter to offer continuous hydration.
Create Color Blocks
Containers don’t have to be complicated if you select plants for their
growth habits: tall, medium, and a trailing variety. This simple planting design yields a multitude of beautiful
results. In this planter Song of India dracaena reigns
as the height component with a swath of big-leaf caladium in
the center and a lovely lacy skirting of scaevola at the base.
PLANTING TIP: Create a flower and foliage privacy screen by choosing tall, sun-loving options such as snake plant, hibiscus, and eugenia.
Written by Justin Hancock
