I need some advise.

18 years ago

I would like to have a few potted flowers, plants, trees, etc to keep outside on my back patio and near my front door.

I'm very new to all of this.

I love hydrangea (sp?) but I was wondering if I could have one just in a pot and not planted in the ground? Eventually I'd like to plant it.

I'd also like a ficus tree but every time I get one for outside it dies. Too much sun?

Any other ideas about what else might be good to keep in a pot? I'd really like something bright and fragrant for the back yard.

Thanks so much!

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Comments (7)

tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
18 years ago
The hydrangea can be kept in a pot. Select a larger size pot than you think it might need. Their root systems are vigorous & they need lots of water in containers.

The only Ficus you can give too much sun is pumila - maybe. The rest prefer full sun. Your problem growing them is probably too much water. They like to become very dry between waterings & of course they need to come in for the winter (unless you're referring to F. carica, the hardy fig). Another possibility is putting them directly into full sun, but this usually doesn't kill then. The leaves just scorch & drop off, but (if the tree was healthy) are soon replaced with a flush of leaves already acclimated to full sun.

Al
MegNYC
18 years ago
You might want to visit the Container Gardening forum, where you will discover that just about anything, given the right size pot, right kind of soil, right conditions (shade/sun, lots of watering)can be grown in containers. And the Balcony Gardening forum has lots of pictures of plants in containers, to give you ideas.
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The bulbs appear to be planted just fine... for future reference, there is no need to tamp the soil down when potting bulbs... just a light tapping on the pot sides to settle the soil, is all I do. I want to retain as much aeration as I can. Once I water them in, everything settles into place. Be prepared to lose some of the leaves they came with... this is normal. They've been up-rooted from their original home and gone through shipment... this is a little stressful, and they might respond by dropping leaves and appearing to rest for a while. What they'll be doing is growing a root structure in their new home. They'll put most of their energy into doing this. Personally, I would not feed them for a while... allow them some time to get accustomed to their surroundings... new light, new soil and pot, etc... plus, whatever soil you're using should have enough nutrition to hold them for a little while. When you do get ready to feed them, it's best to have a lower strength, constant flow of feed, than a higher dose at longer intervals. I feed a diluted liquid all-purpose fertilizer every time, or every other time I water. It's important that bulbs not sit in constant moisture, though since these are young, they will not want to be allowed to dry out in between waterings like their adult counterparts. Good luck with your new youngsters! And if you should have any other questions, we're always glad to help! :-)
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Barnabus, I would requeen right now. I would order a queen and get her via the mail and get her installed. As for the brood chamber being honey bound, I wouldn't worry about it. With empty supers on top and the presence of a good, laying queen, the bees will move the honey around themselves. I had a similar situation early this spring. I installed a single package on Good Friday into a single brood box with drawn combs with no super. It took the bees around 3 or 4 days to release the queen. I feed them during that time and they took 4 or 5 quarts of syrip that they put all in the brood box. By the time I noticed the queen released, most of the brood cells where half full of syrip or pollen in all 10 frames. The queen seemed to just be wandering around. I put an empty super of drawn combs on over an excluder and rechecked the hive about 3 or 4 days later. Most of the syrip had been moved to the top and there was eggs and pupa in the brood box cells. That hive now probably 4 supers that are almost completely full since the tulip poplar flow is just ending. I will probably be extracting in about 2 to 3 more weeks. I estimate there are probably 70 or 80,000 bees in the hive. She is a good laying queen. Keith
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Catlady15, PB is correct that you should be asking yoru dr these questions. Normally your gullbladder stores and releases bile, which was made in the liver, after you eat a meal that contains fat. The bile helps you digest the fat. After your surgery your liver and area around where your gulbladder used to be, will hurt if you eat foods rich in fat. so as your dr probably said, you should stay off fat for awhile. you should never feel bad if you are doing something like not eating high fat foods when you are recovering from gullbaldder surgery. this is your health and it is more important than pleaseing someone. you just need to explain to your family that right now you can't eat high fat diet for medical reasons. i am sure they will understand. Like i started out saying, you should talk to your doctor for a post surgery consultation and check up. make a list of questions you have before you go for that visit, but dont wai to see the dr. best of luck
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Ina Plassa_travis
18 years ago
everyone's got good advice- and many things take well to containers.

I've got a jasmine and a patch of morning glories climbing up opposite sides of an obelisk in a pot- I get the fragrance, and the pretty flowers, and at the end of the season, I pull the MG's out, and the jasmine winters in my bedroom, which it seems to like.

depending on how much space you have, you can do a LOT in containers... things that go with the architectural style of the home (or give style to something that's got none of its own) and provide four season interest.

how much space are you talking about?
sresutek
18 years ago
I have the exact opposite as chinacat - I have my jasmine (star jasmine) in a tall vase-looking pot with a 6" opening at top, with the vine flowing down out of the pot. New shoots grow up, and when they get long enough, I pull them down and link them up with the existing overflowing pieces. White flowers that smell amazing & bloom in May/June here. Very pretty, takes part sun but likes to stay fairly moist.
creatrix
18 years ago
I don't know what zone you are, but ficus is a low light plant here in VA- Mine gets very bright indirect light all year- no direct sun at all, and he's very happy.
tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)
18 years ago
Hi, Creatrix. Ficus species really do not prefer low light anywhere they are grown, though some species tolerate it fairly well. Ficus prefers full sun (one possible exception might be F. pumila). Ficus grow in full sun in the tropics & those plants that begin life as epiphytes or as understory plants climb ever upward through the canopy until they reach full sun.

Al
littlekinder
18 years ago
If you have a shady spot, Elephant Ears make a great statement, can definitely grow in a pot, and come back every year. I love 'em!

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I need some advise.

Comments (7)

tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)

MegNYC

Related Discussions

Ina Plassa_travis

sresutek

creatrix

tapla (mid-Michigan, USDA z5b-6a)

littlekinder

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