We’re looking at winter interest, rewilding, and season wind-down for today’s Plant Exchange. ***Nearly mid-December, the first “shoveling” flips the landscape into contrasts we haven’t seen for a year. Now the red hues of Little Bluestem and Miscanthus appear against white snow cover. Snowcaps adorn the spent golden yarrow from summer. No wonder this is … Continue reading
Tagged with container gardening …
More About Container Sunflowers
Sunflowers are known for the sterile yellow, red, orange, or purple ray flowers and the seed and pollen-producing disc flowers. Helianthus annuus, in bloom as fall approaches in this region, is found in vacant lots and along road rights-of-way. Most sunflowers are annuals that may re-seed. Sunflowers are native to the North and South American … Continue reading
A Mid-Summer Flower and Salad Greens
Annabelle Hydrangea (Hydrangea arborescens ‘Annabelle’) or smooth hydrangea is in full bloom at Plant Exchange Blog. The six-inch round flower head (corymb) of flowers is vase-worthy and can be dried, suspended upside down in a garage for fall arrangements. White flowers pair with other flower colors of the season. This deciduous hydrangea (USDA Zone 3-9) … Continue reading
Flowers in Hot Weather
We can hardly wait for spring in our Northern Plains region! It’s not uncommon to have lots of cool and erratic temperatures during spring, this year included. Now, as summer begins, the unseasonal sweltering days with little rain stress perennial vines like clematis. Its roots flourish with supplemental soil watering and mulch to slow moisture … Continue reading
A Little Something Different with Containers
When I awoke this morning, I realized a container of sunflowers had come into bloom. While I enjoy seeing them out the window in their staging area on the deck, I began to think about how to include them with the other flower containers that we see every day for a new look. Here’s a … Continue reading
Grow Sunflowers in Containers
Sunflowers and the sunny outdoors in summer go together. Sunflowers are easy to grow when direct seeded into flowerbeds. Seed catalogs advertise some sunflowers as having features for growing in containers. Plant them after the danger of frost is past. With 6-8 hours of sunlight a day, even the tallest sunflowers will mature, bloom, and … Continue reading
Debbie’s Container Plants Ideas
Welcome to our weekly Plant Exchange Blog. We feature gardeners and professionals who grow plants of the USDA Zone 4 – 5a region and they share plant ideas with us. Debbie Roberts of Yankton has container gardened for years. She combines various size containers of plants with flowerbeds as she highlights areas of her yard … Continue reading
Deck Container Plants
Container gardening enables us to vary colors and change the area of focus by moving pots. Containers can be placed in the right location for sunlight in our yard. We can grow plants in containers when we don’t have flowerbed space. Plants can be grown on protected decks in pots where they would be lunch … Continue reading
These Amazing Plants
Who wouldn’t want sweet peppers growing on your deck at easy picking reach? Thing about these plants is that this is the second season for them in this container. I brought them indoors last fall to extend the season. To my surprise, although they did slow flowering and producing peppers, this continued all winter indoors. … Continue reading
Containers For A Standout Yard
Terry Winter of Yankton was a fan of tropical plants for container gardens before the current interest in banana trees and bromeliads. Succulents are one of his current favorites. Notice the bold pot he contrasts with the plants’ neutral or light color. Find out more about his container creations in the following story. Your comments … Continue reading
Plant Exchange Blog 