Create a container garden on my porch

They’re rats with a better wardrobe.

Squirrels have been digging in the container planters to eat the roots of some of the plants – and have nom’d the tops of others, like the portulaca, to the bare soil.

I realize they’re hungry – and this must seem like a convenient and safe buffet – but I do wish they’d eat the stuff in the yard (pinecones and such) rather than scattering the dirt and ruining the planters on the porch.

I swapped the spent zinnias and marigolds out for crysanthemums, and added two more lantanas since they should be OK up until the first frost.

While I was at it, I replaced one of the bird feeders and added a third that is supposed to be more squirrel resistant.

It looks great!

While I was gone last week, the creeping jasmine put out a good bit of new growth, so I need to take a bit of time to weave it into the topiary form.

The zinnias and marigolds are completely spent at this point; the petunias are bedraggled and sorry looking.

I’d like to switch out to mums, but it’s still pretty hot… I need to think through what I could tuck in to the containers to replace the worn out stuff.

The petunias on the front porch railings were looking a little bedraggled, so I pruned them rather vigorously & inserted an underlayer of mini flowers. The thought is that a little more cover on the soil will help keep the root temperature from climbing too high… We’ll see if it helps.

Here’s a picture of one of the newly arranged container gardens.

The rental house we’re in has a small front porch, and two decks off the back. It’s good space for container gardening, and that really helps satisfy my need to make this feel like “home” even if it’s temporary.

Currently on the front porch: 4 railing planters; 3 with petunias and 1 with geraniums & star plants.

On the back porch closest to the sliding door: Rosemary, purple ruffled basil, thyme, catnip, sage, cilantro, yukon gold potatos, a creeping jasmine topiary I’ve begun building, some begonias I grew from cuttings, some impatiens and something I can’t recall the name of…

On the back porch closest to the boudoir: yarrow, phlox, zinnias, marigolds, lantana, portulaca and shasta daisies. Plus a pair of bird feeders.

I like deadheading the annuals while I’m on the phone for work… very satisfying to snip when folks are being recaltriant.