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Ponds & Aquatic Plants

in-ground containers

15 years ago

I have got yellow iris, water pickerel, and horsetail reed and want to bury containers in my yard for each of these plants to have their own home. I would like to use an 18 gallon tote container filled with dirt and enough water to leave 4 inches of standing water at the top of the container. I am hoping to get through a zone 5a winter. Has anyone had success attempting anything similar?

I am also curious whether anyone knows whether wetland marginal plants will die, if they fill a container and are not divided.

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Comments (6)

pond_dragon
15 years ago
The iris and horsetail should be alright like that but the pickerel needs to be submerged, it will die if it freezes. Here's the notes I've taken so far because I can't remember anything.

Tropicals to bring inside: Temp. 65* min. 70* ideal, slow moving water

Dwarf Papyrus
Pennywort
Spider Lily
Taro
Umbrella Palm
Water Canna
Parrots Feather
Mint
Bluebells
-------------------------------------------------------

Marginals: Can freeze-leave alone-DO NOT CUT STEMS TILL SPRING

Cattail
Horsetail Rush
Forget-Me-Not
Watercress
Creeping Jenny
Sweetflag
Iris
-------------------------------------------------------
Plants That Need Submerged-DO NOT CUT STEMS TILL SPRING

Pickerel Rush
johnkr
15 years ago
I'd be concerned with a "tote" container freezing solid during the winter months. You don't have to worry about fish, but the container may crack. I've seen it happen to plastic prefab ponds.

It might be worth a try if you can get some free or inexpensive plants, as you won't have much to loose.
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I grow the majority of my conifers (mostly dwarf or compact selections) in containers, including several C. pisiferas. I think your container mix sounds fine, although I'd go light on the compost in favor of the bark fines for long term plantings. SRF at the time of planting is a good idea - any plant grown in a container will need some sort of nutrient supplement due to the low nutrient value of any good container soil and the leaching through irrigation of whatever nutrients might be present......growing in containers is far different from in the ground and you cannot approach the two situations similarly. As to hardiness in containers in your climate.....I couldn't possibly guess :-) Generally, the recommendation is for a plant listed at least one zone and ideally two or more hardier than your own. Size of the container also plays a significant role - smaller containers are more liable to freeze solid in very cold weather than those of a larger size, however small containers can be more easily sunk in the ground or otherwise protected than can big, heavy ones. I grew a number of dwarf conifers in hypertufa troughs until they outgrew the space - they did great. Now my troughs are used for tender succulents, one of my newer plant passions. Never had a problem with hot roots here :-) I guess my mild maritime summers just don't generate the same kind of heat Barbara's do in Lodi. Same in the nursery setting - all of the containerized conifers are out in the open year round with no problems.
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Answer to the first question is 'Yes.' But that doesn't really have any bearing on your second dilemma since you are not starting from scratch with a new plant. First you need to id the 'flower'. Post a picture on the Name That Plant Forum or here. If it has been there for years it must be a perennial or shrub or, possibly, reseeding annuals. It is very possible that the plants have rooted into the ground below the container. That is common. But if you just remove the pot the plant will be sitting up high on a clod of soil which will start to wash away at the first rain, exposing the roots, so that's probably not a good idea. A picture would really help as would some indication of where all this is happening.
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ccoombs1
15 years ago
A white plastic 55 gallon barrel makes a wonderful in-ground planter. You can usually get them for around $5 to $8 each, and make two planters out of each. I have used them for lotus for years. Because they are designed to contain chemicals, they are UV resistant and hold up very well outside for many years. I have used those totes with the rope handles that Wal-mart sells, and found they get brittle after about 2 years. I'd worry about them cracking. I am going on 9 years with some of my 55 gallon barrel planters though.
buyorsell888
15 years ago
I use the plastic whiskey barrel liners both freestanding and buried down into the ground.
deep_roots
Original Author
15 years ago
The suggestions of using 55 gallon plastic barrels or whiskey barrel liners are good suggestions. As I see these comments are from warmer zones, I may need to go with a deeper container. However, today I stopped at a nursery that installs ponds and stocks waterplants. The 'subject matter expert' at that site said that I could use barrel liners to bury and plant. He cautioned me not to cover the tops of plants with water, which do not normally grow submerged. He mentioned that in zone 5a, the marginals will normally freeze solid in the winter. It is not this freezing, but freeze and thaw cycles that damage the plants. He said that marginals left planted in a pond on a shallow submerged shelf will warm up during our infrequent 70 degree days in February, begin to grow, and then die back when the temperature drop to below freezing during the temperature cycling. He said the marginals planted in buried containers will have their soil temperatures buffered by the earth surround the buried container. Because of this, the idea of using buried containers would be more likely to work.
catherinet
15 years ago
I bury lotus and lilies in their containers in the ground every winter and they do fine. I haven't tried this with marginals.......but it seems like they would do fine too.
What you might do is cover them up with wire and pile a bunch of leaves on them in early winter.

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