When I started this cut flower farm journey, many people asked why not bedding plants? Prior to babies, husband, and today’s farm life, I taught agriculture education for twelve years and loved teaching! Especially teaching students how to grow and manage a greenhouse. Students learned how to plant seeds using a planting schedule, maintain a growing crop, and even came up with a plan for how to market their crop!

Even though I knew my passion was set outside the bedding plants world, I still love creating beautiful arrangements using bedding plants! Therefore I want to share some of my tricks of the trade to have successful containers filled with colorful plants! Below are 4 basic tips!

When is it time to plant?

Here in the St. Louis Metro area, we are located in zone 6. This means there is usually fair weather to put tender annuals out after April 15th. But I would watch the weather from April 15-May 1 for unpredictable frost.

Tender Annual: Is a plant that cannot withstand frost. Per this discussion, these plants have an aesthetic value such as flower type, color, or texture to enjoy during the spring/summer months.

2. Evaluate Site

Sun or shade? Check out your location. Is it shady, like the north side of your house or shaded by trees? Does it only receive morning sun? Or do your containers sit on the west or south side and receive hot continuous sun? Depending on how much sun your location receives depends on what type of plants you should use. My front porch is covered and on the north side so shade-loving plants it is! My garage faces the west and receives tons of heat and afternoon sun. So a variety of succulents or geraniums would work well.

3. Choosing the correct pot. Beauty is the eye of the beholder! Pick a style that accents your home or area.

A couple of items to consider:

If you choose clay pots over plastic, metal, or fiberglass you will need to bring them in for the winter. Clay pots can break when soil expands from freezing.
To avoid rootbound plants, choose a pot that will be about 2-3 inches larger than all the plants you plan to plant.
Regardless of which type you choose, remember to consider you are filling pots plants that are considered a focal, filler, and spiller. (I will go into more detail for each of these in #4)

4. Components to fill a pot.

If you love the look of a full container of mixed annuals, the following are the three types of plant structure styles you need to look for:

Thriller: Which is a focal point plant. Find something with height, larger flowers, a texture grass, or create a false height with a flowering vine on a trellis.
- Examples: Geraniums, Dahlias, Cannas, Coleus, Mandevilla, Purple fountain grass.
Fillers: A plant that can fill in the spaces around the thriller plants. You can use more than one variety or color of filler plants. Make sure your pot is large enough and it matches your theme.
- Examples: vinca, impatiences, ferns, caladium, artemisia
Spillers- a plant that spills over the side of the pot. (these are my favorite! They can create so much drama and fullness for the arrangement!)
- Examples Bacoba, Sweet Alyssum, pennywort, Wandering jew, Fuchsia, potato vine, and petunia

I know it would be super easy to buy something that is pre-planted. But if you have the time to dedicate I would recommend planting individual plants yourself. When it is super hot in July and August; you won’t be disappointed when you forget to water for one day and your plants are droopy and unhappy. Pre-planted containers and hanging baskets tend to be root bound by the middle of summer because they are started so much earlier. If you do buy a pre-planted mix container; repot it into a larger container for more root growth.

Before I leave you, just remember as long as you place the plants in the correct sunlight, you shouldn’t have too much trouble! There really isn’t a bad combination as long as you use my four tips!

P.S.: A shout out to my local Agriculture Department with greenhouses!

If you have an agriculture program in your local community please support their program! The students and instructor work tirelessly to learn how each plant species thrives and in turn, provide beautiful plants for customers. When you buy from an Agriculture/Horticulture program you are allowing their program to continue and thrive! Your dollar helps with next year's seeds, soil, trays, repairs, purchases of new technology, and so much more! Each of these programs has a facebook page; please be sure to check them out!

Local Agriculture Departments with Plant Sale: