Planting Time

It's that time of the year again. Before "down sizing", we always had a large vegetable garden, rose beds, perennial gardens and several container planters to prepare every Spring.  Even with less space to plant, we couldn't go a summer season without flowers to enjoy.  The weather here is finally cooperating.  Today we got the last plants in the ground and containers.

Two of my favorite flowers to plant in containers for the past few years have been Osteospermum.  It looks similar to a daisy.  Each new year seems to bring a new color.  They will fill these wash tubs in a short time and be very showy on this old wash stand.   This is the wash stand we found in our trip to Ridgefield, several weeks back.   Not sure the age of this piece, but it had some interesting markings on it.  I think I'll have to "google" this old washstand company and see what I can find out.

Here is the same flower in a new color that I would call "cranberry".

Another annual that I find works well in any container is Calibrachoa or "Superbells".  I have them in metal buckets, old enamel pots, hanging baskets and patio tubs.  They also come in an array of beautiful bright colors that just scream "SUMMER IS HERE"!

Visiting the garden centers in the area and seeing all the wonderful things available, sometimes makes me wish there was more room for plants.   It doesn't take long till I'm happy to have just what we have!
The best part is that less gardening makes for more time to enjoy summer.