Planting Large Containers For Winter
Planting Large Containers For Winter
Whisky barrels, troughs and other large containers are perfect for filling with small evergreens in the fall. Plant them in October and enjoy their beauty into early May. And if you stick some bulbs around those plants you’ll have winter shrubs and spring flowers. In early May, transplant these small evergreens to a spot in the yard so you can fill the containers with summer annuals.
If your container is large enough, use assorted evergreens with a variety of colors and textures of foliage. Be sure your container has drainage holes and soil that’s deeper than the pot your chosen evergreen was grown in. Containers that don’t drain will rot roots and bulbs.
Here are some suggested plants:
One year I planted my large deck troughs with small Cryptomeria, holly and gold cypress. I included tulip bulbs so that after enjoying the evergreens all winter I had bulbs to smile about in the spring. The evergreens are now growing well in other parts of my yard.
The most popular evergreen for containers is the Dwarf Alberta Spruce. These will live in a pot for years, so they are a good choice to plant in the center of a whisky barrel if you want a plant to leave in place.
For contrast, combine a needled evergreen with a broad-leaf evergreen. Here are a gold thread cypress and a boxwood. We have a good assortment of evergreen plants in one gallon pots and this size is good in pots.
A Japanese umbrella pine will grow too large to leave in a container for long, but it can be enjoyed all winter and then planted in the yard come spring.
Holly is another favorite for pots and large boxes. This Red Beauty holly is one that stays fairly narrow so it is good for a container and for landscapes.
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