This vintage enamel pail (bucket) is packed full of pretty flowering plants in delicate shades of purple, mauve, and pink, creating a charming summer planter. Many of the flowers have a beautiful fragrance, so make the most of these delicious scents by positioning the planter near a seating area or in a part of the garden that you visit often during the day.
YOU WILL NEED
Metal pail (bucket)
Hammer and heavy-duty nail
Drainage crocks
Potting mix
plants:
Calibrachoa Minifamous Series Double Pink (mini petunia)
Nemesia Nuvo Series
Phlox subulata ‘Alexander’s Surprise’, P. subulata ‘Candy Stripe’, and P. subulata ‘Kimono’ (moss phlox)
Syringa pubescens subsp. patula (Manchurian lilac)
1 Soak the rootballs of all the plants in water for about 20 minutes, or until they are wet through. Use the hammer and nail to make drainage holes in the bottom of the pail (bucket)—for advice on how to do this, see page 8. Cover the holes with a few crocks to improve drainage. Half-fill the container with potting mix and level off the surface.
2 Remove the lilac from its plastic pot and plant it at the back of the pail. Add or remove potting mix, as required, so the top of the plant’s rootball is sitting just below the rim of the pail.
3 Position the larger plants around the lilac, planting them in the same way as before and ensuring the tops of all the rootballs are level.
4 Plant the smaller plants around the front of the pail, removing them from their plastic pots and letting them trail decoratively over the edge. Add handfuls of potting mix to fill any gaps between the plants. Water the pail and let drain.
AFTERCARE
Check the potting mix in the container regularly and ensure it is kept moist, as the plants won’t like to dry out. Water in some general-purpose fertilizer every couple of weeks to prolong the flowering period.
