5 tips for the (im)perfect flower planter.

I love that it's finally gorgeous outside, but with a mostly desk job, weekends are precious! It's easier to enjoy the sunshine when you're being productive too... Last weekend's project was to help my mom with yard and garden work so I decided to tackle the planter near the entry.

In the past, my floral-expert mother has chosen the flowers and I've just strategically placed them, but this year I wanted full control. After over an hour and more laps around the greenhouse than I can count, I finally settled on my perfect assortment of flowers and plants. 

Here's some tips to help you put together a game plan for your next gardening project. These apply to gardens too, not just planters! 

1. Evaluate the light.

It's important to know how much sun your planter will get before heading to the garden supply store to pick out your plants.

2. Pick a color scheme. 

Although many planters are usually filled with mostly green foliage with one or two pops of color, I'm a color lover so I like to do the reverse: a lot of color with some foliage accents. Choosing coordinating colors will really tie the whole planter together. When you place them, plant contrasting shapes and colors side by side.

I started with a dahlia, above, and chose all of my colors around that super pretty blossom. I pulled pinks and oranges to compliment, and then added deep purple as an accent. For the foliages, I chose accents of bright light green and another with a reddish purple center. I also added a couple potted perennials to the steps in front of the planter to extend the color.

3. Vary the height.

For rectangular planters, I like to build stairs with the plants, the tallest in the back and the shortest in the front. Be sure to check on the plant's tag to see what its growth potential is. If you're working with a round planter, I like to do something tall at around 2:00, something of medium height in the center, and then fill all around the perimeter with smaller plants.

4. Prep.

It helps to set them up, still in their containers, in the same configuration that you'll be putting them in the planter. At least, it helps me - I like a visual plan! Water the plants before you transfer them to the planter, preferably the night before but at least a few hours before. This will help them lift out easily when they're transferred. 

5. Leave a little room.

All of the plants are going to grow quite a bit, so they should be close but not on top of each other in the planter. Again, check the growth potential of each plant and the type of foliage to determine how much space you should leave between. For smaller plants, one inch of space between the next is plenty. For larger plants with larger leaves, two to three inches should be perfect.

And knowing a couple plant terms will also help...

Perennial - a plant that blooms for one season and then dies (must be replanted every year)

Annual - a plant that comes back each year (includes bulbs like tulips)

Typically, perennials are used in planters and pots, annuals are used in gardens.

And here's a bonus tip that I had to learn the hard way...

6. It's okay for it to be imperfect. 
What happened, you ask? A few days layer, one of the dahlias revealed a secret...

I mean, red?! Come on, that doesn't match at all! It's okay though, they're still really pretty. Maybe I'll clip and stick them in a vase...

And there you have it! It's going to be so fun to watch everything grow. And I mean, when that's the first thing you see walking out of the house every morning, it's really hard to have a bad day, right?



Next project: the gardens. Flowers and possibly... veggies?!


xo Emily