Keeping Your Containers Beautiful
Annual containers add instant beauty to any deck or patio, providing a splash of colour all summer long. Here are some tips on keeping your pots looking great right up until fall.
- Water consistently. In the heat of the summer, smaller containers may need watering up to twice a day. Use your fingers to test the soil – if the soil is dry, water soon. Prolonged dryness can cause irreparable damage.
- Feed your plants. A consistent source of nutrients will promote growth of foliage and production of buds and blooms. Use an all-purpose, water diluted mixture of 20-20-20 or 15-30-15 at least once per week. Ensure soil is moist prior to feeding. Organic options include granular Dr. Earth Bud n Bloom or liquid kelp.
- Promote more blooms. Remove spent flowers as they brown or shrivel. This will encourage rapid development of new, vibrant blooms. If plant growth seems weak or leggy, do not hesitate to shear foliage back to promote stronger growth.
- Away for a couple of days? Try ceramic watering spikes. These spikes accommodate various sizes of plastic bottles, and are placed into the soil near plant base. Plants will ‘wick’ up moisture as they require it.
- Away for longer? See our Helpful Tips link on Watering While Away.