How To Plant Flowers and Trees in Pots

There is a large variety of pots is many shapes, sizes and colors to improve the look of your patio. There are, however, some very simple rules to follow when planting flowers or trees in pots to help make your gardening successful. Below are some of these tips.

Make sure the pot is big enough for your plant or tree. It should be large enough to accommodate at least one year of growth.

• Use good soil — packaged potting mix may be the best choice.  It has been sterilized so you won’t be introducing any soil problems or diseases.

• Do NOT fill the bottom of the pot with gravel or other coarse material.  Surprisingly, this may impede drainage. A simple curving piece of broken pot over the drainage hole will keep your potting mixture from leaking out.

• If the potting mix doesn’t have fertilizer in it, add a little bit.  You will want to lightly fertilize most potted plants — indoors and out–every couple of weeks during the growing season.  Or use a slow-release fertilizer.

• Stir in some polymers to the potting mix.  These granules retain water and release it slowly to the soil.  That can mean you have to water the potted plants less frequently.

• Double-pot to help protect pots exposed to direct summer sun.  The inner pot should be terra cotta to absorb water to cool the pot and to allow the plant roots to breathe. The outer pot should be large enough to allow you to put insulation between the two pots to further help control heat. For insulation, use sphagnum moss, coarse mulch, wood chips or crumpled newspaper.

• Move planted pots into shade on hot days.

Keep in mind that as the weather heats up, you may still have to water your potted plants two or more times a day.