Despite the fact I’ve been planting in containers since terracotta pots first became trendy, it never occurred to me until this morning that putting some weedmat over the drainage hole will keep the soil in and the bugs out. (I say that as if it just came to me out of the blue, which is not true. I read it in a free garden brochure – the only reading material on my bedside table when I woke up at 5.50am.)
This handy hint means that when you lug the pot to its final resting place, it won’t leak a trail of soil all over the brand-new white stones on your terrace. Why did I never think of that?
The second early morning hint I discovered was to let a pot plant dry out a bit if you think it’s going to be recalcitrant coming out of its pot. I cracked a lovely ceramic oil pot while removing a very determined yucca, and have been nervous about repotting ever since. But armed with this useful information, I’m eyeing up a number of pots and plants that I think would benefit from a trial separation.
This ficus probably isn’t coming out of this pot anytime soon, but thanks to an excellent diet and plenty of water, it’s comfortable.
If you’ve never really rated container plants, I implore you to have a rethink because they have many more functions than simply containing mountains of overenthusiastic mint.
The best reason in my bookis that they look good. A pot, whether it’s terracotta, concrete, ceramic or metal, adds colour, shape and texture to the landscape. Even the fullest of gardens will benefit from something that gives the eye a holiday from flowers and foliage.
It doesn’t have to be planted, either. Some pots look perfectly fine with nothing in them, which is just as well if you’re keen on the urn types whose tops are smaller than their bottoms. Have a look at your garden, select a spot that’s heavily planted but a little dull, and stick a teal, maroon or orange pot in there – instant impact.
Pots are very handy for hiding things you haven’t fixed yet. For the broken masonry by the back door, a pelargonium in a tub is the perfect camouflage. Sit it on an upturned pot until it’s high enough to do the business.
Plants in containers are easier to place at eye level – set them on a wall or a pedestal. They work really well as decorations for the outdoor dining table in place of flowers in vases. Shallow basins are perfect for this – you can fill them with a mix of flowers and herbs, or make a mini-garden from shells and succulents.
The bright colours of the pots add heaps of impact to this tropical garden.
If you already have things in pots, it’s a good time to take stock of what is and isn’t working – apply some TLC where required. Keeping a plant in a pot that’s too small is like wearing jeans that fit perfectly five kilos ago. Yes, you can still get them on, but, no, you don’t look good in them.
And unlike jeans, pots don’t stretch.
If your plants look yellow, dry, sad or limp and aren’t growing or flowering well, they urgently need new jeans. Some plants will need them regularly, while others will survive in the same ones for years – provided they’re fed and watered well, and have their potting mix changed from time to time.
If you repot them, shift them up a size or two, but don’t go from a medium pot to an XXL or they might have a sulk – after all, who wouldn’t?
Once your plant is out of the pot, remove about a third of the old potting mix from around the roots and cut off any rotting or damaged roots. Ensure the new pot is clean – nobody wants
to wear someone else’s jeans if they haven’t been washed.
Use good-quality potting mix suitable for the type of plant that’s going in there, mix in water crystals if you like, and don’t forget the weedmat over the drainage hole. Leave a gap of a couple of centimetres at the top of the pot so the water can soak in. A good drink with some liquid fertiliser added, and you’re almost good to go.
I usually mulch with shells or white stones so the cat is less inclined to investigate the suitability of the pot as a public convenience, and because it gives a fresh look and provides a contrasting background to the plant.
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