Tuesday 18 June 2019

"Life Changing" Gardening Tips

I'm being sarcastic with the title of the post of course. The news feed that comes up on my computer often has headings that profess life changing food choices or makeup tips or kitchen cleaning strategies. Not sure they are life changing. Sometimes they are remotely interesting. Most of the time I don't bother clicking on them.

So, if you clicked on this, these are just some handy dandy tips, showing you a couple of things I've been doing over the years when planting large pots / planters / urns. You likely are already doing them, but just in case you aren't, here you go:

The first tip will help keep the soil in your pot, and keep your porch or deck or patio from being a bit messy. Your pot likely has a drainage hole in the bottom. It's necessary so your plants don't get waterlogged. But sometimes the water carries a lot of soil out the bottom, too. I keep a package of coffee filters with my gardening supplies.


Before putting the potting soil in the container, just place a coffee filter in the bottom. It still allows water drainage, but keeps your soil in your pot, not on your patio.


Handy Dandy tip number two:
If you are planting a large planter, you really don't need to fill the whole thing with potting soil. Most annuals have roots that don't need much more than several inches of room below them for their roots. Why use a huge bag of premium potting soil when the depth isn't necessary? Instead, fill some of that space at the bottom of the pot with something else.


I save large plastic containers for a variety of reasons. Husband uses them in the shop for storage, or for paint. I use the lids in my classroom for little paint trays. In this case, just use empty plastic containers with the proper fitting lids.


I was able to fit three containers in the bottom of each planter. I likely could have fit in more! They fill up a decent amount of space, don't add any weight, and can be reused again after you empty the planter out at the end of the season. Just put your potting soil in over top (and in the spaces in between), plant your flowers, and watch them grow. This year I've used mostly sweet potato vine (I like the light green kind), geraniums and coleus.

One last hint - I stole this one from a local greenhouse owner and heck of a funny guy. He fertilizes his pots and hanging plants at home once a week on Fridays. He calls it fertilizer Friday. I use the blue powdered fertilizer that you just mix with water. It makes a big difference with how big and lush your flowers are. Fertilizer Friday - an easy way to remember to take care of your planters.

Today was lovely and warm and felt like summer. Oh happy day!

24 comments:

  1. Good tips....if I was still in a house with a porch and a yard I would definitely use them. Fertilizer Friday...that's cute.

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  2. I think hint two will change my life as previously I have used rocks to fill up large pots. My aching back thanks you.

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  3. It never occurred to me to use plastic containers! I have put in an upside down terracotta pot, and as much other "trash" as I could find to fill the void.

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  4. I didn't know about the coffee filter tip, thanks.

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  5. I didn't know about those tips - especially like the coffee filters.
    It is pouring with rain here.

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  6. Thank you for sharing. Later today I am going to plant some succulents in a pot for the patio. Adding the containers is a great idea. Now where did I put those old yogurt pots I've been saving??

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  7. Great tips. Two of them I do already. I put coffee filter or newspaper down first, then add a few large stones around the drainage holes then another few filters. I like the way your gardening centre man has to remember to fertilize - Fertilizing Fridays is my new mantra. ... Mary-Lou =^..^=

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  8. Fertiliser Friday fertiliser Friday ....trying to remember for Friday ! Fertiliser is sitting outside on a table, has been for a week. Fertiliser Friday, sounds like a very good tip

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  9. These are great tips. Thanks for sharing. Happy Wednesday. Have a great rest of this week.
    Hugs,
    Kris

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  10. The coffee filter is genius. I need to remember that for next year.

    And so is using the plastic containers. It's so impossible not to get things in plastic so finding multiple uses is essential and smart. I think they are VERy life changing gardening tips!

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  11. These are great ideas. I especially like the one about coffee filters! I'm going to use that!

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  12. Will have to save these ideas for next year as I have just finished filling my last container! Thanks for posting your tips, Jenn.

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  13. Great tips! I wasn't familiar with any of them. I just dug out some fertilizer today, it's going to pour tomorrow, so I'll start Fertilizer Friday this week! Glad you're getting some good weather!

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  14. Great ideas! I use stones instead of the coffee filter, but I'm thinking that would a good way to keep them in place at least until the coffee filter dissolves.

    I especially like the Friday fertilizer idea and will definitely use it in the future.

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  15. Good ideas. Love the name of your blog!

    www.thepulpitandthepen.com

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  16. Thanks for the tips, Jenn. We no longer have outdoor pots, but when we did, instead of containers, I used stones, rocks, and broken pieces of clay flowerpots. Also, I appreciated the tip about using the coffee fikter for indoor planrs.

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  17. Great ideas - and anything that saves me work and headaches is life-changing. I did get a good laugh at that, though. So many of them are fairly lame ideas that would not make even an iota of impact on my life. I use sheep's wool in the bottom of my large pots because I have tons of it! What a brilliant idea with the plastic containers, though.

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  18. You are so right about the potting soil! I feel like I sometimes waste too much soil when I transplant my seedlings. I LOVE the coffee filter tip too! Brilliant!!!! Fertilizer Friday, Love it!!!

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  19. Isn't it funny that we all have some little "tricks of the trade" that we do without thinking, but when we share them we find not many others know about them? (Whadda sentence, eh?) What I'm trying to say is that I will now use both the coffee filters covering the drainage holes in my pots and the empty plastic containers (good recycling!) to "fill" big pots without making them so heavy I need a fork lift to move them! Thanks, Jenn!

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  20. Life changing or no...I dig these tips!

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  21. Coffee On The Porch And 80's Music, What A Brilliant Way To Start A Sunday.

    Cheers

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