Some plants you can cut back a bit, to make them more full, and produce more flowers. They just wont get as high as otherwise. A better idea would be to plant (or sow) something that simply WANTS to produce so many flowers, that you can÷t see the leaves, like Sweet Alyssum, which is a favourite of mine. Especially the white ones are extremely easy to grow. If you think it gets too rangly, you can simply cut it back. Petunias are another option. I just don÷t grow them, as I don÷t like touching them (they feel a bit sticky), and hate the smell they produce when I÷m dead-heading them... and they need dead-heading to stay alive). Another solution would be to grow something with attractive leaves. To avoid seeing the soil, you could also plant something like sedums or sempervivum they both love the sun, so don÷t plant them with anything that will shade them out completely... they have very shallow roots and don÷t really compete with the other plants, though you have to take care, not to put the sempervivums in pots that contain water loving plants, as they might rot if overwatered (I÷m planning on putting them here and there this year, to see what they will actually accept, in regards of companions, as I have a LOT of them). Lobelia is another option, and Sweet Alyssum, as I mentioned, though they tend to get a bit of hight as well. Or you could just put a pretty mulch on top. Mulching also helps you keeping the watering down a bit. And yes, as Julianna says, if you buy something that is already planted, it is most often overstuffed. They want it to look good in the shop, to make you buy it. Then when it dies from not having enough water in the soil to feed them all, you÷ll go back to buy another full planter. Congratulations on your harvest last year! 6lbs of toms is not bad at all!

There are many bonsai trees bought/sold for prices in excess of one million dollars. In other countries, patrons purchase the trees as investments and entrust them to the care of their favorite (bonsai) master. It's very common for the trees winning their category at bonsai shows in Europe & Asia, especially Asia, to never have been touched (worked on) by the owner - only the master or perhaps one of his favored apprentices, depending on the value of the tree.

Hi to all 3 of you, and thanks for the replies!!! Garden Nerd, never heard of the plant you grow so had to do a Google to see what it was. GreenLarry, hi there, think I recognise you from the EPS forum?? Coincidentally, we too have lost 2 greenhouses over the past few years during winter storms...very annoying to say the least and expensive in both cost and man (& woman!! ) hours to replace. Last time it was a 2yr old 16 x8 that was trashed so we decided enough was enough took the aluminium to the scrap yard to get back what we could for it. We re-used the toughened glass as we salvaged all but a couple of panes and went for a DIY wooden one attached to the side of the garage block. The wood cost a fiver, we already had the concrete blocks spare and spent a few £££'s on wood stain/screws/bolts etc. It hasn't moved so far!!!

Hobby, you got it exactly right :) The larger the pot, the larger the holes should be. I imagine the bottom of my pots having holes that are many and also almost half of the area of the bottom should be the drilled holes. With potting soil that I use, I have to have that ratio for drainage holes, otherwise my plants will be in trouble in the winter months. Also if the bottom of the pot has "peaks and valleys", if you look inside the pot and see "valleys" you have to make more holes there, becase the water gets trapped in those areas and its very bad for the roots in the winter time (see the strategically placed holes in my blue bucket in the picture I posted above :))