How's That Workin' for Ya? ~ Container Planting Plans

 In the winter I spend a lot of time window shopping for annuals and planning my containers.  I posted about my container plans in HERE and I thought I would give you an update on how my plans worked out.

My big splurge of the year was mail ordering Peachy Keen Superbena live plants.  They have turned out very nicely.  This planter could use a grass of some sort in the center.  I plant on repeating it next year with Prince Tut papyrus and maybe some purple Supertunias.

Those Daddy Mix tunias just will NOT give up!

The shade container did not go as planned.  The tubers I got are NOT Golden Balcony.  Not even close.  

Two of them rotted after transplant so I replace them with some extra Superba mix I had.  One turned out yellow and the other is white.  I will save the Superbas for next year because I like them but I'm ditching these deep orange.  I will have to think of another plan for this container.

The entrance containers are doing awesome.  Hot and dry is perfect for growing Geraniums.  They are not producing as many large blooms as they did in June so I've tightened up their fertilizer schedule to see if I can get them going again.

I haven't been babying them and they were only being watered about once a week.  One of the euphorbia in the back of this planter dried up and died and a purslane volunteered instead.  It looked rather nice so I left it to fill in.

In this tall planter in front of the chicken coop I planned on having caladium.  The caladium I started never amounted to much despite being kept on a heat mat.  There are a few leaves here and there but I put in the geranium instead.  It looks colorful and tidy but I really need a thriller and a spiller in here.  Next year I'm going to look for Queen Tut papyrus for these smaller containers and a vinca or ivy to spill over.

Replacing geraniums with border height dahlias worked out well.  Most of them are blooming beautiful, large blooms.  Others are a little behind, but being imported tubers they were a little beat up by the process and I expect them to do better next year.  Remember we have had very little rain and I am not watering these so they are fending very well for themselves.

The color is exactly what I wanted.

Speaking of dahlias, my dahlia bed is bursting into bloom.  I have watered the dahlia bed exactly once.  It was June 23rd when I was emptying the last of the rain tank so we could clean it.  I gave them a good soaking because we were already low on rain and I figured it was only fair to give them a little something.  Most of the plants are shorter than usual but that is a good thing with dahlias.  The blooms don't appear to be suffering at all.  This Cafe' Au Lait below was really really slow to spout so I planted some spare snapdragons at its feet just in case it never made it.  The dahlia made it after all and is now providing a nice support for the snaps.

Three blooms at once...

Not missing the water at all.

Its always exciting waiting for a new variety to open.  This is Gitt's Crazy.

Almost fully open it is very similar to the Lady Darlene which is already my favorite.

Lady Darlene has more cream in it.

This year I started all of my Marigolds from seed.  Last year I had this vision of the Vanilla being like a little formal, curved hedge at each corner of the pear tree bed and it worked just perfect.  Each curve has five plants except the lower right where the plow blade interupts it.  I was one plant short so that worked out fine.

I planted Strawberry Blonde and Fireball in each corner.

The firepit planter is looking awesome.  Last year the Celosia I bought was wimpy and tried to die so I interplanted with short zinnias. This year I started three varieties of Celosia from seed. Then, of course, I found nice ones at the nursery that were about a month ahead of mine. So I bought two packs, plus added some of my own and then direct sowed extra seed as an experiment.  The store bought plants were nice through June and July but you can no longer see them now that my plants have reached maturity.  The store bought were Fashion Look and topped out much shorter than the First Flame and Century that I planted.

So that's what's happening with my annuals.  Over all they are doing great.  I want to do better on that tall planter in front of the chicken coop, and do something totally different in the planter that now has begonias.

And in the vegetable garden....

The sweet corn is almost ready.