Petunias Stopped Blooming? It’s Not You, It’s Them.
I recently received this email from a client with a roof garden in Boston:
“Just got home . Garden is beautiful!! Thank you.
In contrast, our Cape containers look terrible. They (mostly petunias ) were pretty good all summer. Then all of a sudden they stopped blooming. I had been using a fertilizer in solution weekly. The product is supposed to stimulate blooms. I did it weekly for about a month—the last time I doubled the dosage.
Do you think that I over-fertilized? Any thoughts? Can you do magic on Cape Cod?”
While I am more than happy to do magic on Cape Cod I, unfortunately, cannot do magic with petunias. I have never succeeded with them long-term. Perhaps I am doing something wrong but it’s one reason petunias made my lecture “The 10 Most-Popular Container Plants – And Why You Shouldn’t Use Them.”
Petunias peter out, let’s be honest. They look gang-busters when you buy them in May and I think that’s why so many of us are seduced by their vibrant, brightly-colored little faces. We don’t look down the summer months and see that those same faces will resemble Grandma Moses. You can whack petunias back in July and hope that your hard-pruning will put the fear of God into them so they will bloom for your anticipated graduation/christening/bridal shower/first communion get-together. But that doesn’t always work. As I get older I get less sentimental. I am not interested in a plant that requires constant deadheading to look its best.
As my friend Kerry Mendez says “plants are not children or pets” we can get rid of them without guilt.
Which is what I do with petunias.
Out they go and are easily replaced with another colorful annual that will look even BETTER in August than it does in June. Are you wondering what that annual is?
Read More»Contain Yourself
Did you know that, in addition to residential clients, The Captured Garden has many commercial clients as well?
Having commercial clients comes with its own unique set of challenges. We are tasked with creating beautiful one-of-a-kind window boxes or containers that must look good 24/7. On top of that, they need to stand up to an often tough urban environment and lack of regular watering.
One of our favorite commercial clients is Pine Straw in Wellesley, and more recently, Waban. Pine Straw features a great collection of items that you don’t see everywhere from clothing and jewelry to decorations and home goods. I’ll admit it’s often hard to plant outside because I am distracted by all the cool stuff I see in the windows! Despite a tough environment, we often find the window boxes at Pine Straw are the best-looking in the neighborhood. Hats off to Tracy Cranley and her crew for doing such a great job!
Why not visit PineStraw and check out The Captured Garden’s work yourself?
I had so much fun creating containers last year that I am doing it again. “Contain Yourself” is a mini-demo where I will plant some of the neat containers at the shop (think galvanized metal…sigh). Pick up some container gardening tips and enjoy some wine and cheese at the same time. Sounds like a win-win, right?
“Pockets” Make Easy Fall Containers
This time of year I feel like that kid from the movie The Sixth Sense. Remember the one who saw dead people? That’s me. Only I see dead windowboxes. Containers. Urns.
Ghosts of gardens that were undoubtedly the pride of their owners now left to die.
I can’t help but wonder why the people who delight in designing their summer containers don’t keep the beauty going into fall. After all, fall windowboxes are not difficult to create. The key is planting “pockets”.
Start by planting evergreens in the container to act as the “bones” of the design. Boxwood and dwarf arborvitae are great choices for bones. In between the evergreens, the “pockets”, plant seasonal material. Even if you choose to plant only in summer your evergreen “bones” mean you have a decent looking container during the other three seasons. You can make a great looking fall windowbox without planting a thing, just add simple embellishments. For instance, gather some interesting gourds or seed heads and use branches for height. Just make sure you NEVER use bittersweet vine as it is highly invasive. A simple combination for your fall container could incorporate an ornamental grass, a cabbage or kale, and some pansies. Even though the days are colder don’t forget to water your container. Until the soil freezes the plants still require moisture.
If you are not planting anything in your winter boxes remove fall material before it becomes frozen in place. Cutting off plant material at soil level is a good option if Jack Frost catches you unawares and helps you avoid the “ghosts of containers past” syndrome.
Fall in New England is a beautiful season with spectacular colors and interesting details. It’s the perfect opportunity to plant something in your containers that will take your breath away – before winter does.
This article was originally written for Pine Straw, an apparel and home goods store in Wellesley, MA.
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