Since very early times gardeners have had the idea of growing plants in containers. The practice may have begun as a way of nurturing treasured rarities or plants charged with a special religious or mystical Significance. Old frescoes and paintings give ample evidence, though, that the decorative value of container grown plants has been appreciated for a very long time.
Much in container gardening has remained unchanged over many centuries. We still grow plants that were loved by gardeners hundreds of years ago and containers of traditional designs and materials continue to be widely used. There have been changes, however, particularly with the extraordinary expansion of gardening as a leisure activity over the last 5O years. New materials, such as fibreglass and plastics, have been used in the manufacture of a greatly increased range of containers. The hanging basket already known to the Victorians, has come into its own. Furthermore, the transformation of the retail trade means that it is easy to buy all the supplies needed for the container garden - from the pots and hanging baskets to plants suitable for growing in them - at garden centres and other outlets.
Colourful half-hardy plants give a long summer display and do well in all kinds of containers. The hanging basket contains petunias, Lobelia, Fuchsias, Pelargoniums and a grey-leaved foliage plant which cools the hotter tones. In the window boxes are Petunias and Lobelia.
Roses are an important group of shrubs that has been developed by plant breeders. There are so many cultivars that roses are generally treated as a category of ornamentals on their own.
Herbaceous perennials are generally thought of as long-term plants for the open garden. However, many adapt well to life in containers, including good foliage and flowering plants. More tender ones, such as begonias, can be grown as annuals but can be kept through the winter if protected from frost, such as in a greenhouse.
Bulbs (the term is here used loosely to include corms and tubers) are a special group of perennials that deserve separate treatment. They are indispensable for spring and include many star performers for other seasons.
Three main groups of short-lived ornamentals are the mainstay of many container gardens. The first are biennials, plants that flower and then die the year after they have been sown. Wallflowers (Cheiranthus cheiri),which are representative of this group, are generally bought as plants in autumn, although the gardener can sow his own seeds in summer for flowers the following spring. Annuals, plants that complete their life cycle in a season, fall into two categories. Hardy annuals, such as cosmos and pot marigolds (Calendula) are easily grown from seed sown in spring. Half-hardy annuals, like French marigolds (Tagetes), are best started in heat in spring and many gardeners prefer to buy commercially raised stock of these.
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