Deck Rail Planter Makes Great Small Space Gardens

Most people staying in flats do not have the luxury of  big space.  But that is not the excuse not to reap the benefits of a small space gardens. Deck rail planter or deck planter often comes in as the most appropriate solutions. Any addition of green small space gardens can have a lifting effect especially for corners or space that do not support plant life. This will bring life and make the area more welcoming , relaxed and friendly.

Deck Rail Planter Makes Great  Small Space Garden

With a spade of flat lifts upgrading in my estate, small deck space is created at every floor just outside the lift. More and more heart landers are making full use of this extra available space to create a small a space garden. Railing and fence window box style planters has turned the railing deck into a garden oasis

Deck Rail Planters - Hanging Small Space Garden

Areas boarded by a railing are transformed from a bland to dramatic and from uninviting to cosy with small rail planters that include deck rail brackets with window box style planters. The railings planters, deck flower boxes and fence rail planters are mounted on or hung over the railing using  deck rail brackets.

Deck Rail Planters - Hanging Small Space Garden

I understand in overseas, many pro and amateur gardeners grow tomatoes, lettuce, carrots, corn, melons, strawberries and even pumpkins for self-sustenance. But where I stay we usually buy from the wet market or super market. Most people grow plant for hobbies and curry leaf herbs container gardening is quite popular. Curry leaf has many herbal medicinal properties and is a prominently used herb in south Indian cooking. Curry leaves with food strengthens the functions of stomach and promotes its action.

Curry Leaf Plant (very left) - Pandan Leaf Plant (most right)

Get started with small space garden with deck rail planters and railing brackets and turn your deck in to an awsome hanging garden.

Hanging Pots-Hanging Garden

Freestanding pots and container  gardens are common to be seen planted on the ground level. However hanging pots can also add a new charm to a container garden with floating beauty and greenery at eye level and above.

Potted Plants And Hanging Potted Plants

In my neighbourhood,  gardener  who enjoys gardening but lack of gardening space still have the option to  surround  themselves with flowers and plants by starting hanging pots garden.  Hanging pots can be used to create small garden growing plants  or flowers we love according to the local climates.

Growing Money Plant In A Hanging Pot

Beautiful plants or flowers that blend with the environment  are both catchy and soothing to the eye. With the right combination of colours a plain looking entrance can be lifted up with both beautiful hanging pots and potted plants.

Plain Looking Entrance Transformed With Hanging Pots
And Potted Plants

With the right hanging pots and brackets they are secured from small children or pets that could mess up the lovely gardens. Moreover hanging pots  that are  suspended from a wall bracket  can beautify house wall, balcony or veranda.  Any  concrete shed that is unattractive can also be visually boosted with a couple of planters and hanging pots.



Hanging pots are excellent for adding colours and lives to patios, courtyards, walls or open corridors. With so many plants and plant combinations to choose, starting a small hanging garden has never been more easier.

Container Herb Garden - Enjoy Fresh Herbs For Culinary

Herb container gardening is very popular with people who enjoy gardening and is a favourite for those who love the taste of fresh herbs in their home cooked meals. It would be great to have the fresh herbs we need whenever we want them for our cuisine. We don't even need to have an outdoor garden to grow herbs. Grow herbs in a pot or any suitable container would be just great. This is simply a fantastic quick way to have fresh herbs right at our fingertips.

Below video contains a very helpful detail instructions on how to create our own Container Herb Garden from selecting a container to planting the herbs and caring for the garden.

Herbs grow well in containers. Ensure that the planter has drainage holes so that extra moisture can be drain away. The shape can be anything from round to rectangular. My two cents  is to get a catch pan as well so that it can catch the excess water that is drained away. For a start with herb container gardening, select a group of plants that are doing well and suitable for our location and limit to three or four herbs so as to cater some space for the plants to mature and roots to breathe.

Most gardener would begin herb container gardening with all time favourite taller herb such as Rosemary for the center piece of the decorative pot. Then fill around with smaller herb like Greek Oregano which spills over the sides of the pot. Most herb lovers agree that Greek Oregano has a distinct flavor and is perfect with pizza.

Culinary herbs like Sage, Basil, Parsley, French Tarragon and Chives also do well with herb container gardening. Sage, which is used with poultry and fish has a great place in the kitchen. Basil has good herbal flavor and is suitably used in pasta dishes and salads. Parsley is a very common herbs used in kitchens and French Tarragon can be use it to make Tarragon vinegar. Chives needless to say have many uses in your kitchen place as well.

Thyme, a small plant is also a herb that does well in containers. There is a variety of culinary thyme. We can use Garden thyme or Lemon thyme. I love Lemon thyme which smells like lemon and also has a strong lemon flavor. It is especially great with fish and chicken. Have fun trying them out and enjoy herb container gardening.

Still Short Of Herb Container Gardening Ideas

Wait till you watch  below video. I thought this is like a mini container herb garden encyclopedia. Its so informative.

Besides taking care of the norm like having enough sunlight, sufficient water and fertilisers in herb container gardening , the next important thing to note that it is beneficial to keep trimming the herbs every two weeks or so. Plants like Rosemary we want to keep on trimming them back to allow it to get bushier and ever so flavorful with the new leaves and shoot that grow out of it. Trim your herbs and use them in your cooking in a regular basis.

In preparing a fancy meal or a simple dinner, nothing can bring out the flavours of food like fresh herbs. Many indoor herbs can grow well on sunny windowsill which makes it even more attractive to start a container herb garden.

Lucky Bamboo Container Gardening

Lucky Bamboo are houseplants which can grow in water just like like cut flowers and it can last for many years. My lucky bamboo plant is grown in a vase near a window and I changes the water weekly and it does fine without me feeding it. I find that Lucky bamboo is easy to grow and is able to adapt to its environment easily.

Lucky Bamboo Growing In A Vase

Lucky Bamboo is a species of Dracaena Sanderiana and is not related to the Bamboo plant . However its stalks which look similar to Bamboo could be the reason why it is popularly known with its more common name. This plant also grow well in soil although it is more common to grow it with roots in water. In any growing methods this plant still performs well with little maintenance.

Lucky Bamboo Grow In A Flower Pot

Most Chinese people who like auspicious stuff will buy Lucky Bamboo when the Chinese Lunar New Year is round the corner. It is very commonly use in Feng Shui to create positive energy in the environment. In Business or career it can symbolise prosperity and advancement respectively. In religious wise, it is used to match with flowers as an offering to deities.

Lucky Bamboo Decorated And In Different Shape
Commonly Available When CNY Is Round The Corner.

Three Tier Bamboo Tower looks great and among the many decorated Lucky Bamboo is still as popular as before.

A female worker in China assembling a 3 tier bamboo tower.

Container Gardening Tools

Useful Container Gardening Tools

For container garden we only need a few simple and useful container gardening tools, none of which need a lot of storage space. With the right tools available we can get more things done without causing accidental damage to the plants. Most of the container gardening tools are easily obtain at garden centers or through mail-order suppliers.

Gardening Gloves

Not a must for gardening but does provide protection against thorns, dirts and help to keep your hands clean. Some garden glove not only allows women’s hands breath, but it also stays cool even on hot days with the added ventilation panel on the back of the hand. Personally I don't wear glove when it comes to gardening as I like the feel of dirt. In the any case when "you are touching a lot of things like prickly rose bushes and things of that nature that your sensitive little hands would not want to touch" gardening gloves is very useful.

Secateurs/Pruners

When planting, most gardener may need to cut dead wood, leaves or flowers or labels, even plants. Invest in a pair of secateurs that are good enough to make clean cuts, even on thicker stems. Pruning shears or Secateurs are a type of scissors for use with plants and most popular with gardener. One useful tip is to get secateurs with tension control and with sizes that best fit your hands.

Trowel

This tool will provide great help with container planting. This is one of the great container gardening tools with a scoop shaped metal blade and an easy grip handle. Handy in digging small holes and loosening the soil especially for planting and weeding, mixing of fertilizers or other additives, and the transfer of the potted plants.

Hand Fork

Hand fork and Trowel are used to dig small holes and for gardening in pots. Fork is one of the handiest gardening tools that have been in around for a long time. Older designs are recommended. Hand fork does not usually come with various features to hail, a sturdy one is much appreciated.

Below is an interesting garden tool that I come across  for gardeners who use a bigger flower pots and need muscles. "PotLifter is a tool to help the do it yourself gardener lift heavy planters, rocks and other landscaping items. It can also be used to transplant trees, or even lift a keg of beer!"

Watering can

Watering can is especially important in dry weather. Plants require a good soaking not sprinkle to keep them from drooping. Watering can has a spray attachment on the spouts so that the water shower out gently. It helps to make it easier for you to water your plants as it can be slightly tilted, maneuvered and balanced in your hand. Also with watering can you can also apply liquid fertilizer as you water.

When it comes to gardening, having the right container gardening tools will offer immeasurable help with the nitty-gritty of planting.

Growing Bamboo In Containers

Bamboo can be an ideal plant for growing in containers and it can be pleasing to the eyes to see several bamboo in glazed containers or planters showing off in the patio.

Any gardener can make use of available space on patios, porches, verandas or driveways that can stand a pot or two to grow bamboo in containers. I have scoured through my neigbourhood and manage to find one family growing running bamboo in a pot along the corridor.

Running Bamboo In A Pot

I have observed that bamboo are quite popular with shops owers and office. Below bamboo in white glazed containers are simple but merge well with the surrounding. So choose container colours that will complement both the bamboo and your garden and property, soft pastel shades are best that will not distract from the beauty of the bamboo.

Bamboo In White Container Infront Of A Baber Shop

Below bamboo in planters infront of an offices also merge well with the surrounding and breaks the monotonous corridors. My two cents, avoid using plastic containers as they will not do the majestic bamboo justice and plastic containers are just not heavy enough, especially for tall bamboo, they will blow over on a windy day.

Bamboo In A Planter On The Right Side Of An Office

Bamboo In A Planter On The Left Side Of An Office

Bamboo grown in containers are not likely to grow as big or as well as they do in open ground, but they are still ideal as attractive and majestic decorative container plants and adding something special to a garden and property.

Bamboo Tips

Learn more about what species to grow, what it will look like when mature, how to take care of the bamboo. Recommended Bamboo Resource the American Bamboo Society (ABS) website. My jaws drop when I look at the number of species that is available.

 

CNY Container Gardening Plants

Chinese New Year Container Gardening Plants

During Chinese New Year (CNY) auspicious words are traditionally used and exchanged. Prosperity; Success; Good Health; Wealth; Growth; Abundance; Harmony; Peace; and Luck are just afew meaningful and popular words exchanged among friends; relatives and business partners. Flowers and plants are purchased for their auspicious and symbolic meanings and can be place at home, temples, or as gifts for friends and business associates, during Chinese New Year, to wish them well for the New Year.

Today is the first day of the Chinese Lunar New Year for 2012. I visited a local ChineseTemple with my familly to ask for blessing for the year of Dragon and took afew pictures of these Auspicious Container Gardening Plants with my Samsung pda hanphone. The pictures are not very clear but it still tell a thousand words.

Mandarin Potted Plant Before The Main Entrance

Chinese New Year will be kind of wierd without Mandarin Oranges which come in different sizes. During Chinese New Year, greetings are accompanied with a pair of oranges. This is a traditional practice among the Chinese. It symbolises "gold" and all the good wishes for the new year.

Four Seasons Lime Potted Plant

Four Seasons Lime are potted and are portable so that they can be easily displayed at any suitable places. They are usually decorated with red ribbons, and other decorations to make it look more even more auspicious. The small 1 inch diameter size fruits symbolize gold nuggets. The orange, bright yellow lime and the luscious leaves blend well together. Placing them at the doorway or in the living room is said to bring good luck and wealth for the year.

Potted Four Seasons Lime At Flower Centre

Popular Greetings: "Gong Xi Fa Cai" (Wishing You A Prosperous New Year)

Earthbox Gardening

Earthbox is a clever self watering container system that addresses several key issues that most gardeners encounter. Many do not have the time to weed or water frequently and some do not have a big gardening space. Earthbox is able to resolve all these problems and naturally has become very popular with gardeners who desire an easy to maintain self watering container garden

I was so excited to stumble and learn about this product in youtube. It makes gardening available to everyone, and especially busy people who can easily forget about watering their plants.

How It Works

So just as like a little kid that discovered something new I did more research to know more about it. Here is what I discover. I learn that the Earthbox is self watering container system which make use of the large water reservoir in the bottom to continually keep the potting soil moist for the plants to thrive. This system is such that we can never over water it as it has an overflow hole. Once this system is set up we just need to keep the reservoir full by filling water via the little pipe until water flows out from the drainage hole.

Clever Design

The upper area of the self watering container holds the potting mix, fertilizers and plants. And very cleverly the aeration screen that is placed in between allows the water to be wicked throughout the soil. Soil cover included in the Earthbox gardening is used to cover the top of the potting soil to keep in the moisture and keep away from the weed seeds or any plant related diseases.

Tips
To make it possible to grow produce all year round this sytem also come with casters. This is to allow one to move it to any location easily where it can get the required six to eight hours of sunlight

Earthbox allows gardeners to grow transplants or to plant from seeds. This self watering container system which can be set up in just minutes is perfect for for both amateurs and experts. It is big enough to grow anything and compact enough for the patio. And because it is easily portable for both indoors and outdoors Earthbox is highly popular especially with gardeners who desire to grow vegetables all year round.

So how to set up an Earthbox? Well, after going through scores of videos I believe below video is the Best for anyone to understand and begin with Earthbox Container Garden. I hope you learn something new about container gardening just like I did.

Happy gardening.

Container Garden Designs Simple Or Exquisite

Container garden designs can be as exquisite or as simple as you can think of. In deciding a gardening project, consider the containers, foliage, and visual appearance you desire. Ideally, good container garden designs should more or less occupy your intended gardening space, has a unique colour theme and include a good combination plant colours and texture.

My neighbour's Simple Green Container Garden

Matching Containers

Select containers such that your home and garden match and merge in with the surroundings harmoniously. You do not need pots of the same shape and size, but is important they match in colour. Use same colour pots for your container garden designs this will help in the flow of connecting outside to the inside of your home.

Pots And Planters Need Not Be Of The Same Size

 

Grouping of Containers

A large container still works fine with the right choice of plants and given space. However, selecting a number of smaller containers to replace a bigger one can spice up your container display. Smaller container blends well in a small space and easily contributes to the feel of green outdoor garden.

Containers of the same size

Colour and Texture of Plants

The important step involved in container garden designs is colour. Plant colour can varies from bold and vibrant to soft pastel. Likewise, texture of plants play an important role in container garden designs. There are numerous ways to create good matching of colours in a combination planter. A plant with big dramatic coloured leaves combine with one that is soft and airy will blend well perfectly. Do not worry too much about what others say, as long as you are pleased with the colours that you have put together after some careful selection you are on the right track to having your dream tiny garden.

Colour and Texture Of Plants

Arrangement Of Plants

Different plant varies in characteristics either in size or the way it grows. An ideal combination can be steadily upright, mounding and trailing plants. Many container garden designs utilise the popular thriller, filler and spiller system. In this method, three types of different plants are used in one container. The thriller which is the taller plant and the focal point. Next is the filler which are the flowers you have chosen base on their contrasting colours by putting around the focal point. Lastly, the spiller is trailing plants that hang over the edges that give lots of colour and foliage.

Arrangement Of Plants

Any garden with a good colour combination will likely add calm and tranquillity to its surrounding. There are really no fix and fast rules about it. However, besides taking some time to design the mood you want also consider matching the colours with the surrounding you intend in all your container garden designs.

Kids Container Gardening A Learning Experience For The Children

Kids container gardening magically helps to renew our sense of awe at nature and getting in touch with the earth. It's refreshing for the soul and particularly enriching for children who have too much negative influences in their daily lives. Starting a garden with children can be a rewarding activity for both the child and the adult. While the children have such a feeling of amazement the adult while observing them enjoying the growing process is such a wonderful pleasure.

I wish I have done this with my kids when they were much younger. I'm sure that if I had asked my kids if they wnat a garden when they are much younger they would surely be overjoyed. It need not be big, a garden in a pot or tub in the balcony - all are good ways to start. My kids are much already in the high school now and much involve with social media and iphone games. Never mind, below videos just reminded me how time has passed and how mordern technology has on one hand improved our life but the other hand taken away our simple joy in life as well.

Kick off kids container gardening by providing them the gardening supplies required and they can get involved in the gardening fun in no time.

Getting to watch and wait for the tiny seed or a smaller plant to grow bigger is so much fun. Over time children will learn how to take care of their plants and perhaps get to appreciate the life. It would be good to emphasized to children what it takes for a plant to thrive are water, soil, sunlight and air. These needs could easily be contrasted to human necessities such as water, food, shelter and air.

In kids container gardening, perhaps kids can also can get to discover the plant life cycle and how man can either destroy or create our enviroment. For some inquisitive kids this could be their first exposure on the miracle of life via a seed or a tiny plant. This can be a new and fun experience for the children. Who knows, this activities may have lasting impression on them while at the same time parents can improve their relationship with their kids.

Indoor Hydroponics Gardening

To some extend I do know that Hydroponics gardening is widely referred as the growing of plants without soil. It is used for growing healthier plants, succulent fruits, lush vegetables and herbs and it make use of the technique of growing plants in water which contains dissolved nutrients. And the plants get sufficient nutrients it thrives without the soil.

But what I don't know is that we can grow hydroponics plants indoor too. Until my daughter from high school shared with me that with the use of the right nutrients and the suitable artificial light source, hydroponics gardening can do well also indoor. She even show me the below videos and after watching it I was comtemplating to try it out.

Just for curiosity I did some more research and realised that there are three broadly used hydroponics gardening systems. The ebb and flow system, aeroponic system and the drip system. And the kind of system that people choose is likely a personal preference. The trend of hydroponics appears to be promising. As plants can grown indoors, they can be made to grow almost anywhere, in any condition and weather.

For a controlled environmental hydroponics gardening system, besides temperature, water, CO2, oxygen, pH and nutrients, controlled light is also important. Most plants need sufficient sunlight. However, for indoor hydroponics gardening , artificial light such as bulb light is required. The intensity of the light should be high but do take into the consideration that it does not significantly raise the temperature.

In the process of finding out more I discover more about the advantages of hydroponics gardening. Not only that it takes up a small space, it only use a small amount of water comparing to the traditional farming. In this technique, soil is not required so there is no need for toxic pesticides. And weeds and soil borne disease are removed.

This is an eye opener for me, hydroponics gardening is cool. This is certainly one of the good way in growing a healthier indoor plants especially herbs and vegetables.

Vegetable Container Gardening Can Be Rewarding

Vegetable container gardening can be fun and a rewarding hobby for a majority of people. The rewards, nothing is more gratifying than to indulge in a dinner served with the fresh vegetables handpicked from your very own garden. Well of course, not forgetting the fun experience you have with it.

I love to eat instant noodle soup with hot chilli. For a simple guy like me,  a bowl of hot instant noodle soup with freshly plucked chilli from my chilli plant this simple joy is just unexplainable. Hot and spicy.

 Chilli Plant is easy to grow from seeds.

Money saving things for some people. Mums may want to a cut on the grocery bills and at the same time have exciting fun with vegetable gardening. In vegetable container gardening get started from seed and do take into the considerations of cold climate or warm climate plant. For plants to thrive make sure that the container plants are getting the right amount of sun light. Grow a garden of fresh tomatoes, herbs, peppers and more almost anywhere with a space-saving Patio-Garden that are easily available

Tips:

In vegetable container gardening if you choose the right vegetables that goes along with the proper containers to grow them, you will soon reap lots of home grown vegetables. In deciding what to grow just take a look at your refrigerator or visit the supermarkets to find your most favourite vegetable or the expensive vegetable which you want to grow yourself.

I did a little research on vegetable container gardening and discover that some types of vegetables are more appropriate for growing in containers while other like sweet corn need a little more room to grow and you require a very large pot to support it. Vegetable like peas they do not need a big space, they only need to be 3 to 4 inches apart and something to grow up onto like the trellis. Plants like spinach and herbs are awesome. They can be 5 to 6 inches apart from each other and you can harvest from them in all year or summer long. Plants like carrots grow under the ground make sure that your container is deep enough to allow them to develop under the ground.

Cherry Tomatoes, My Wife Loves it.

Every gardens begins with a first step, and the first step is to decide what kind of vegetable to grow. So, enjoy and have fun with vegetable container gardening. By the way I just bought this cherry tomatoes from my local garden centres. My wife loves it.

Container Gardening Ideas Anyone Can Use

Most people with an indoor garden will probably garden for several reasons. One reason would be to add some beauty and greenery to the small space and area you have. Another reason for container gardening is likely to grow some food. Some good pointers on container gardening ideas suggested here for creating a desired small space garden will evolve around using the right pots, potting mixture and the combination of plants.

Right Container

The wonderful thing about container gardens is that they are fun and portable. We can start with container gardening ideas by getting back to the basic on choosing a good container. What is the key to become a successful gardener. There are no fix and fast rule actually with container, use any container but I will make sure it has got drainage, a hole in the bottom of it. Without this simple drainage, we may drown our plant in a day. A glazed or ceramic pot would be excellent to stand the weather outside.

Combination Of Plants

Container gardening ideas about choosing the right mix of plants in your container can be the most fun with your creativity. And putting plants together is as easy as ABC which anyone can discover in a minute. The first thing we need is to get a thriller, a tall plant that is placed in the back of a container. That will create the focal point for anybody who takes time to appreciate your container. Next thing we will need is filler, which are the flowers chosen base on their contrasting colours. Lastly, the crucial part is to have the spiller at the front the container. Yes, something that spills over the front of the container so that it grows down and gives lots of colour and foliage over your container.

Potting Mixture

For any indoor gardening to be a success, having container gardening ideas about potting soil is important as it has a significant role to play. Soil directly from garden is not recommended as it is normally too heavy. Well, unless additional weight is needed or containers are not going to be moved so often then it would be appropriate. Otherwise a lightweight potting mixture is recommended. Packaged lightweight potting soil can be easily obtained from your local garden centres. However anyone can also prepare their own potting soil by mixing sandy soil, farmyard compost and other slow-release fertiliser with garden soil. This generally will make large container much lighter.

Anyway, there should not be any fix and fast rules for container garden actually. However the best container gardening ideas are the ones that are not only appealing to our sight, but fun to create.

Welcome To Pretty Gardens

PrettyGardens would like to welcome you and say Hi if you happen to stumble into this blog. I hope that the information in this blog will inspire if not all but some to explore the world of container gardening and discover more ways to add a burst of color and life to our home gardens. I believe that anyone who loves gardens can just get started and have a terrific garden with our own style.

I used to stay in the village where gardening is easy and fun. Now staying in flats I still love gardens, and somehow I always feel refreshing after seeing beautiful gardens and plants.

By the way, I did some research in the library and discover the attraction of container gardening. I realised that plant containers can be employed anywhere on our front step, on the railing deck or patio, under the windows, hanging in the front porch, under a tree, in a flowerbed or even by your mailbox. Needless to say I discovered a wide selection of container gardening accessories which I have not even come across.

I have read a couple of interesting blogs and I was tempted and also comtemplating to start one.That is how the idea of why not I start to blog about container gardening come about.

Cheers...
HSim