In the deep South, it seems we "winterize" almost everything from the pipes (at our hunting cabins) to the water features in our home landscapes. Yet, when the day to winterize finally does arrive, we sometimes overlook those containers and planters that are fixtures in our landscapes during the rest of the year. So let's take a look at how to "winterize" your containers, so that they become a spirited feature in your winter landscape.
Despite winter's association with the color gray, winter is actually a great time for colors and a great time to use the colors in our containers; from deep evergreen greens, to vibrant oranges and yellows found in winter annuals. For this pair of front porch containers, I started with the evergreen...a conical compacta holly (Ilex crenata 'Compacta'). By using an evergreen, I've created a "permanent" backdrop to display seasonal color in this container. Compacta hollies are great for containers due to their (as the name mentions) compact growth habits. The second runner up was an arborvitae (thuja spp.), a conifer that resembles a cedar. Yet, this guy was not quite the right size for what we were going for...but an excellent option for smaller containers. Check your local nursery for their selection of evergreens and conifers to see which will work best for your containers.
Since my containers are wooden and were recently re-worked, I placed a plastic liner on the inside to preserve it. Yet, to get a large enough size for my liner, I had to get a bit creative and use a plastic tub...with the rope handles removed and the top spray painted black. If you go this route, make sure to also drill holes in the bottom for drainage...but more than likely your nursery will have a liner the size you need. (Creativity is part of the small town experience in this case). And voila, a liner for your container!
Now on to the plants. Plant the holly just like you would a shrub in your landscape by first loosening up the root ball. I do this by cutting slits into the side of the rootball with a spade or knife and creating flares at the bottom. This allows more of the root zone to come in contact with the soil of the container.
The container was about 2/3 full of soil when I added the holly to it. This way, the top of the root ball is almost flush with the top rim of the container. Then, just fill the rest with your soil, covering the rootball with about 1" of topsoil. The holly was placed more towards the back of the container to allow room in the front for our color splashes with winter annuals.
While I am not crazy about ol' pansies, I still found some love for them in this container....they were planted in massings of 3 and 4 around the base. Most of my winter annual love belongs to the snapdragon, which was added to our foreground mix with our pansies. Not only did the combination of pansies and snap dragons provide splashes of needed color, but the leaf sizes (pansies are a larger leaf = courser texture and the snapdragon has a smaller leaf = finer texture) provided added textural combinations to our containers. While color is often the main feature we notice in our landscape plants, textures and forms play just as important role in creating visual interest in our containers.
I grabbed a handful of crocus bulbs and tucked them in between the pansies and snaps. These are great due to their small size and planting depth (only 2"). Simply place them where you would like some spring pops of color and push them into the soil. The crocus is an early spring bulb in the iris family that reaches about 6" in height. So, just as our snaps and pansies start to waiver, an entirely new color and textural element will explode on the scene.
And for the finishing touch, a layer of Spanish moss to camouflage our engineering. The rim of our bucket was a bit higher than the container ledge, but with a little moss....problem fixed. Don't forget to water everything in really well right after planting and 1-2/week after that, if your container is on a porch. If they receive harsh, direct sunlight, you may need to up the frequency to 2-3/week.
Now, your container that was last year's winter drab, it is this year's winter fab. As you begin insulating those spigots, emptying your bird baths and winterizing the rest of you yard, don't leave those planters of yours out in the cold.
