This year my gardening has consisted of briefly digging a hole and sticking in the plant. They have been lucky if I remember to water them and have yet to be fertilized. Although it’s not the ideal way of gardening — it is what many of us find ourselves in as we are pulled in various directions that life throws at us. I think it’s also what makes us very appreciative of the vibrant colour and serenity when we look out our window or have a brief chance sit out on the patio.

As such, in posts to come I will post some pictures of the containers that although I would like to say have been lovingly created and cared for, in reality have been put together in a quick rush before the next meeting, dinner guests or pending inbox full of emails. I will also try to post some tips and tricks that worked (or didn’t) in obtaining a garden container patio on a time budget.

I was happily surprised to find that in my herb containers  five herbs made it through the winter (chocolate mint, oregano, rosemary, garlic chives and a curry plant). I will still be needing to get basil (African Blue is a favourite), thyme and hopefully try something new.

All the containers are ready for planting which means it’s time for the fun part– picking out colourful varieties of plants to fill them with. The Hosta and Astilbe are back for the shade and I love that there is very little involved in keeping them happy. Remember if you’ve picked up a new hosta I’ve heard it’s beneficial to pick off the new flowers the first year.  I wish everyone a fun filled season of gardening and remember to take time to enjoy all your hard work and effort! Please feel free to comment with your favourite plants or things you are looking forward to this gardening season.

1- Collect rain in a rain barrel to water your plants.

2- Compost your food scraps etc. for nutrient rich soil to use on your garden.

3- Use native plants to your area. These plants thrive in the conditions specific to your area so they don’t require as much care and watering etc.

4- Water in the morning or at night to avoid evaporation of water in the heat of the day.

5- If your changing out your potting soil in your containers be sure to compost the soil or add it to your backyard garden.

6- Use solar lights if you want to light up your garden at night. They don’t need any electricity as they use the sun to charge up during the day to light up your garden in the evening.

Please feel free to comment with any tips you have for keeping your gardening earth friendly!

It has been a fun experiment so-far and we’ll see how the Fuchsia’s continue to grow. Feel free to comment with any of your ideas, tips or experiences with this great colourful shade plant.

Not only is eco-friendly a trend but so is wallet friendly so perennials are a great idea as well as planting your own vegetable and herb gardens if you have the space to do so. We are keeping our fingers crossed our fuchsia cuttings will end up turning out which will save us money as well. This year mixing vegetables and herb gardening seems to be a trend although one has to consider maintaining the size of the herbs as the root systems can get quite extensive.

Don’t be afraid to use colour and mix up your groupings as this year’s trend is to stay away from “cookie cutter” type layouts. Local is eco-friendly and in but I’m also seeing the term “worldly” as well so we’ll have to see how that pans out.  Keep it simple and keep it fun! We are looking forward to 2009!

http://www.gardenbanter.co.uk/showthread.php?t=83787

Kathleen Syson says to put the cuttings in a cup of water, topping up but not replacing the water until there are a bunch of roots and then pot them up in compost.  She puts them on a window ledge or in her shed.  I plan on trying that this year and I’ll take some pictures of it them hopefully growing roots and coming around next year *fingers crossed*. Click on the above link to see a discussion on using clippings and seed pods. Happy Gardening!