As we creep up into the 90s, I’m reminded that my idea of lovely hanging baskets and container plants is not a great fit with our climate:
Isn’t that beautiful? With a boatload of water, some filtered sun, and a couple dedicated misters you can probably pull something like this off in our heat. But doesn’t that sound like a lot of effort?
My solution for potted and hanging plants looks more like this:
I know, it’s not as much of an in-your-face display of color and foliage. But, don’t you think it has tons more character and a unique offering of form? Plus, I regularly forget about this pot for weeks (months) at a time, and it’s all still alive! Try that with Mr. Dead In Two Days Without Water Petunia Pot.
So next time you’re in the market for a heat-proof container planting, here are my recommendations:
*Mix it up with form – combine something vertical with something spiky with something roundy and you’ll have instant interest.
*Mix it up with flesh color – our desert plants have skins of all colors, so skip the solid gray-green palette.
*Try a gradient planting – yellow barrel cactus (roundy) + green San Pedro cactus (vertical) + blue Parry’s agave (spiky) + purple prickly pear (?) = show stopping.
