Compatible Bedfellows…

By “bed,” I mean flower beds, raised beds, and/or containers.

 

I’m sure many of you have been making garden plans and are anxious to get going like me.  Although I don’t have significant projects planned for this summer, I decided to change how I plant the containers in the back garden.  I’m thinking of planting herbs and vegetables in the containers that run parallel to my house (south exposure) and another row (north exposure) in front of my garage.

These photos were taken yesterday, April 2.  As you can see, I still have snow on the ground.

Some years ago, I planted a small kitchen garden (potager) in containers on the west-facing side garden.  In theory, this should have been a perfect spot, but the elm tree cast too much shade, and it never took off.

If I were to plant all my containers in these areas with just vegetables and herbs, we couldn’t possibly eat it all.  Therefore, I want to combine annual flowers in the containers…plus, I want to maintain some structure that compliments the rest of the garden. This is where it gets tricky. Finding compatible bedfellows will be a bit of a puzzle.  Fine-tuning the light, soil and water requirements, as well as colour, will be imperative.  My back garden is mostly green, white and light purple, and I want to keep that consistent.

I’m considering including some perennials in the south exposure containers, which can be moved into the landscape at the end of the season. I’d also like to plant clematis, sweet peas, tomatoes, geraniums, alyssum, and rosemary.

For the shady areas, I’m thinking of chives (which should winter over) with alyssum, spider plants, dill and ivy, basil, parsley with ferns, different varieties of lettuce and radishes, and mixing in shade-tolerant perennials like sweet woodruff, to can be moved in the fall.

I know this all sounds good in print, but I’m determined to try it.  How are your garden plans?  xox Judy❤️

P.S. If you’re interested in a similar planting scheme, the charts below may be useful.