Wow...so much good info still coming in. Thanks :) I am going to add some buzzing friends to the mix. I have purchased, and will be making more, Mason Bee houses. Plan to put them around the deck and see if they can help with pollination a little (hopefully a lot). I won't be discouraged if things don't work out. I have been planting tomatoes in two gallon clay pots, sitting in the driveway, for three years now and they do fine. If my deck project fails, I'll go back to that. The deck is treated, and hopefully I'll do it again before I set up the deck garden this spring. I have a hot tub sunken into the deck in one corner, but I don't use it anymore. I plan to build a box over the cover and set planters on top of that. I'll do some before and after pictures and post them when I get a chance. Brody

1. You won't want the sand, dirt or clay in the container. You don't say what kind of sand, but if is the small particle stuff like play sand, don't use it please. What you want are larger particles to promote good drainage. This thread explains in detail. Given what you have on hand I would say the peat moss and perlite would be your best bets and then go with an 8" deep container as it will support a low oxygen, water saturated layer at the bottom(you will understand this better after reading the thread linked to above). This mix will also be fairly light compared to say, clay and gravel. I would have said to just use the potting soil mix you have, but the term is vague and I don't know what ingredients are in it. If it looks like a really nice, loamy dirt, don't use it. If it is mainly peat then go with that. If you got really lucky and it is mainly small bark pieces, definitely use that. 2. The herbs don't need any more protection than anything else does from the wind, but dill can get fairly tall (2-5' depending on the variety). It is a fairly 'airy' plant so doesn't catch the wind all that well, but I generally try to have other plants propping it up or something the prevailing winds can blow it into and stop further movement. Again, the dill will likely survive the winds, but it can be blown such that it is now hanging well over the container instead of remaining upright. In terms of it being edible, this won't matter, but if you want a 'neater' appearance you might care. I am really not sure how to support it all that well in a deck railing scenario. 3. The dill and other herbs won't be stunted in the container at all assuming you use a sharp draining potting mix and fertilize a bit. In fact I think you may find the opposite to be true. Many herbs seem custom made for container growing as many ground soils are too wet and in zone 4 too cold for them to do optimally. In a container neither needs to be a problem. Some of the herbs you can manage their size by pruning (using) them, but I wouldn't do that with dill. I don't know if you just want a little dill every now and then or if you want a lot, but if you prune the dill to limit it's height you are going to reduce the amount the plant produces and they don't really produce a lot per plant.

I have 3 hayrack planters on a south facing brick wall...they get the hot, southern sun all day. I plant with regular potting mix and then rake in SoilMoist crystals per package directions. I find the SoilMoist makes a big difference. But you need to water frequently. I water daily, except when the temp is above 90, then I water twice a day, once in the early morning and once about 2 hours before sunset. This year, I have done the hayracks as follows; verbena (drapey, vine like flowering plant), duranta (bright, yellow-lime green tiny leaves, no flowers), double wave petunia, sweet potato vine (lime green, no flowers) and geranium. Your bronze liner is going to get very hot, you might want to cover the part of it that is near the plants with some moss to keep the metal from burning the plants. You might want to consider using the moss as a mulch also.

Hi pameliap, I'm doing the same thing but with a few smaller boxes. I've seen some really nice pix for inspiration, and like louisianagal decided to use sweet potato vines. I will have both colors, and also dichondra silver falls, and then red geraniums in the center. Later in the season the geraniums will get replaced with Vinca Jaio Red if they can't stand the heat... Also sowing some nierembergia, which I've never had but is said to look delicate but be very tough through the heat. They are white with yellow centers. Another trailing plant I love is blue daze (evolvulus), bloomed nonstop right through november for me, some days it had 60-70 blooms on it on a hanging basket, and withstood erratic watering very well. I will definetely have it again. Finally, I am not sure if they are trailing (growing for the 1st time this year), but if you like Petunias, there is the Laura Bush variety that is supposed to love heat and bloom right through it. It's only available through wildseedfarms.com, I just got a very nice order from them. I believe they are purple but now have pink as well. I am including a couple links I found especially inspirational when I was in the design stage of my planters. Good luck and have fun! Leticia This one is for Hooks & Latice's contest, lots of pics http://www.hooksandlattice.com/windowbox-contest-2007.html The one below is for someone's balcony garden blog, which I also really like Here is a link that might be useful: Citygarden's blog