Things are a little crazy around here. The air conditioning ducts are being installed around the house and we are frantically trying to keep going on the Master Bedroom closets. I am trying to decide if I can squeeze an Ikea trip in this week. Meanwhile I am still working on planting some of my finds from this year’s Scott Arboretum Plant Exchange. So while the chaos continues I thought I would show you some of the beautiful container plantings that I have been admiring. Because who can’t use a little gardening eye candy!
On Mother’s Day we managed to make a quick trip over to Terrain (which was filled with well dressed mothers who were busy dining and shopping inside). Of course I was outside, checking out the plants. I did pick up a couple of interesting perennials but my favorite thing about visiting Terrain are their interesting plant combinations. I like the mix of perennials, annuals and even small shrubs and vegetables. This mix helps to keep the cost down and actually extends the season. In this amazing undulating planter above they have mixed a small grass with succulents, ground cover and a few annuals. I also like the addition of the small pebbles.
The show stopper were a pair of GIANT logs. This picture really isn’t doing it justice, but the carved out logs were stunning (and about 6′ long). I would imagine you would need a backhoe to get it into place, but it was really unexpected. Here they have actually planted some colorful lettuce w/ moss, ground cover and a few flowers. I’m not sure over the long term whether all of these plants would do well in the same amount of sunlight, but it was pretty cool.
After our little excursion we stopped over at Scott Arboretum to say ‘hi’ to the fish and so I could admire some of their amazing grounds.
In the front of their building they have quite a few containers in part shade. They have used a lot of perennials and they have done a beautiful job of picking ones with amazing texture and color. Above this coral bell (heuchera) had a silvery purple leaf. It was paired with a succulent and a small pine.
Another similar planter with more heuchera and a couple of blue pansy thrown in for added color.
This really makes me want to rethink some of my containers. Granted, both of these places have the advantage of greenhouses and staff to replace plants on a whim, but I will keep plugging away here. I like the idea of using small shrubs for a season and then putting them in the ground in the fall.
