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Published Friday, January 22, 2021
Properly potted
By Victoria Torley
Recently, a good friend asked me to write a bit about potted plants. She and her husband are renters and they might want to take favorites with them if they decide to move, but there are other reasons to love potted plants. You might want to move a plant from the sun to shade or when the rainy season hits us – and oh boy has it hit us recently – you might want to move a plant from outside onto a covered patio. Potted plants – it's a huge topic.
So, what can be a potted plant? The answer? Just about anything, even trees if you go in for bonsai. So, what are the basics?
First, pick the right pot. Plastic, ceramic, cement, they all have their virtues and vices. They all need drainage holes in the bottom, that's a given. Cover the drainage holes the old fashioned way, with a layer of rocks, or use a piece of landscaper's fabric.
Then study your soil. You want a different mix for different plants. Orchids take one mix and they are wonderful potted plants and tomatoes take a different mix. Usually – usually – you are close if you have good soil, manure and fertilizer.
So, what makes a good potted plant? If you want a single plant, an exotic fern is nice. But suppose you want flowers. Oh boy, there are a lot of them.
Begonias are nice. There are varieties with beautiful leaves that look lovely when the flowers are not in bloom and the plant will droop over the edges of the container. Need something low? Primroses and portulaca are wonderful. Something tall? Grow a bougainvillea as a tree.
How about fragrance? Jasmine and gardenia make wonderful potted plants if you keep them properly trimmed. Want your potted plant inside? African violets have been winners indoors for a very long time.
Gloxinia, freesia, oxalia, ranunculus, amaryllis, they all make fine potted plants. And don't forget vines although each will need its trellis.
And, of course, you can mix plants in your container. Something tall in the center like the tree bougainvillea, with shorter plants at the base. Simply make sure that all the plants like the same environment, water and fertilizer schedule.
Once you have your chosen plants, remember to follow watering and fertilizing schedules – they won't be the same. Be prepared to battle bugs and move your plants to more favorable conditions in the yard or on the patio.
Plant for the Week
The Mirabilis jalapa or Marvel of Peru is both colorful and fragrant which makes it a wonderful potted plant choice. Flowers open in the evening and close the next morning, so you will have scented air on the patio while you sip your evening glass of wine and watch the sunset. Plant in the sun and avoid over-watering. Prune back dead flowers and stems.
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Editor's note: For more information on this article, Ms. Victoria Torley, gardener columnist, can be reached at victoriatorley1@gmail.com.
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