Lisa Kortan, urban forester for the City of Yankton, is responsible for choosing annuals that decorate downtown Yankton all summer. She also chooses kinds and colors of annuals for parks and boulevards around town.
Just like we have environmental considerations for the annuals we choose to highlight our green spaces, Kortan puts a lot of thought into plants that will flourish in exposed, windy, full sun and partial shade areas and will last at least until fall planting.
Some plants, like the basket plants on city light poles, have minimal soil and require daily watering in summer and require repeated fertilizer applications.
She coordinates colors and general appearance of plants that grow in tandem with the light pole baskets.
She finds annuals that grow well in large planters and convey a new look each summer. Sometimes the containers are each unique and sometimes repeat a pattern of color and airy design and balance between foliage and pot.
These are also considerations we think about when we look for annuals to add splash to our surroundings. See the article in which Kortan describes growing conditions, soil for baskets and containers, and her choices of annuals that grow well for containers and beds in this region. Here’s the link to the Yankton Press & Dakotan article:
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