Weekend of Planting

I took the plunge and planted my annuals this weekend.  It was a mini marathon event (at least for me it was) with going up and down steps many times, digging up soil from out back to half fill some of the larger planters, filling the planters with new potting soil and then the plants which all got an extra dose of pelted fertilizer.

This cart is basically empty now with the exception of a couple of plants that I had to wait to plant for a couple more days. 

This is a rather large ceramic planter I picked up a few years ago.  I put a deep red Martha Washington geranium to the rear and two bright green coleus up front which will fill in.   I may stick a sweet potato vine in the front but I haven't decided yet.  Excuse my messy deck.  It's desperately overdue for some re-staining.  

Next to the big dairy planter I have my obelisk which I haven't used in quite a few years.  I found some nice blue pottery that fits into the rings nicely and found some shade loving p pants for it.  That's my hose that I pull out to water things.  

The hummingbirds will appreciate the fuchsia.  Both planters have some Ivy and polka dot plant in them that will spread and drape.

This has a "Firecracker" upright fuchsia in it with white alyssum that will create a ring around the base.

I've used a different fuchsia that had an orange color for the past few years so I decided to try a new look. 

I got Dan to paint this plant stand for me since it was getting rusty and chippy.  I found a copper planter that fit in the top like it was made for it.  In the past I tried using a coco liner in the top but it ended up looking messy and the birds like to pull on it for nesting materials so I was looking for a better idea.  

I've seen people planting boots now for the past few years and I decided to give it a try.  I drilled two holes in the bottom for drainage and loaded the bottom with stones so they'd have some weight to them.  I planted Diascia in them hoping they'll be topped with lush flowers.

The design on them is a work of art.

The Eiffel Tower and flowers all around. 

I added these metal topiary frames this year to help hold up the Black and Blue Salvia that get really huge.  I chose a lemony yellow supertunia to play nicely against the blue and added a vinca vine.  Once these supertunias take off it will really fill out.  Last year the Black and Blue Salvia was so huge I had to stake it so I'm hoping this wire frame will do the trick.

I'm in love with this crazy frog planter I found at Pier 1.  I have a red striped petunia and little yellow violas in there with another vinca vine.  I haven't done much with my fairy garden yet but I'll be into that soon.

On our way out back this is a metal art object Dan bought me.  It has two hummingbirds that look like they are feeding fro the flowers.  I teeters back and forth and swings around when there is a wind.  As you can see the hostas are on their way up.  Before long you won't be able to walk through this area.  We still haven't gotten to the mulch but it will happen.

These are my Jack Frost Brunnera that are just starting to bloom.  

I planted this with all white impatiens this year.  Last year the impatiens filled out the entire insides of this metal orb.  They sell these to hang from a tree or such but I planted it.  What can I say!

You can see how this looked last year at this "link".

I asked Dan if he could paint my arbor which we moved to a new spot.  The plants are coming up fast and we wanted to get this done as soon as possible.  The reason for painting it is because it basically disappears into the trees.  

He's my painter- I appreciate the help since this is so tall and I would've been real uncomfortable on the ladder.  The color I chose is called Stone by Rustoleum and it looks a lot like the color of the fountain.

For some reason this came out looking like the sides aren't spaced right but they are.   The hanging basket has a white New Guinea Impatiens and some vinca vine.  The impatiens will get pretty large so I only one in.  I took all my pictures with my cell phone- I need to bring out my good camera but I'll wait for things to look a but more filled in.

I know it's hard to see here but it is easier than it was before.  I wanted to see how the arbor would look as a backdrop to the fountain.  We'll see how it look as the summer progresses.  There are a lot of hostas that form a ring around here that are still coming up.  We had to run sprinklers to water things since we haven't had any rain for too long.  The fountain isn't on yet because the trees are dropping debris and pollen right now.  Probably next week.

Everything I planted looks insignificant since it hasn't had a chance to fill in.  In a couple of weeks things will look quite different.  I tried to stick with red, yellow and white in my planters for the most part.  I did plant some red and white star impatiens around most of the ring here but I didn't take a picture.

This Sweet Woodruff is blooming all over.  The Pachysandra that is nearby just finished blooming.

By the garage I put the two planters I talked about in my previous post.  You can see a small brown urn in this picture which has a red Sunpatiens planted in it.  There are two of them that flank the stairs.

Out back by the big maple tree is my antique wagon I picked up last year.  See the shovel by the tree- I had my eye on them for a couple of years but didn't like the price.  I found some on discount at little boutique store last fall.  They are laser cut and this one has a moose, the moon and a pine tree.

The wagon is planted with white impatiens and some Ivy.  It gets a bit of sun very late in the day.  

The link I provided earlier shows how the wagon looked as the summer progressed last year.  

Well that's what I did with my annuals.  It will be enjoyable watching them grow.  I hope you'll come back and visit as I post through the summer and fall.

I'm joining the following "A Garden Party"