Potting up your plot: Containers are a delight – but be sure to pick the right type 

Holiday or not, this is the gardener’s busiest weekend. Most of Britain is now frost-free so it’s the perfect moment for planting and setting out summer containers.

In my youth, plants grew in terracotta pots, wire hanging baskets or timber window boxes. My Dad planted huge chrysanths in exarmy ammunition boxes and everyone thought he was nuts. but they looked terrific and even Mother was impressed.

Today, with such a diversity of pots, troughs and urns, it’s difficult to know which are best for the job.

To thrive in a container, a plant must have plenty of room for root development. The pot must have holes at the bottom and the compost should drain freely.

They must be easy to plant, too and to ‘un-plant’ in autumn without damaging the roots or breaking the pot.

I prefer containers to be discreet in shape and colour. They can be beautiful but should allow the plants to be the stars.

TERRA FIRMA 

There’s much to be said for terracotta containers whether fancy or basic. Ordinary flower pots with holes at the bottom are fine for most plants. The colour of the fired clay goes comfortably with almost all flowers and foliage, too.

Potting compost is less likely to over-heat in terracotta than in other containers and plants seem to thrive more readily in those than in anything else.

Terracotta is fragile, however and a knocked-over pot is almost certain to break.

Winter damage is likely, too, unless the pots are guaranteed frost-proof. Luckily there are alternatives and even plastic planters can look surprisingly good. Cube-shaped ‘tree boxes’ are perfect for planting. The best are lead-coloured and made from a mix of clay and fibreglass. They’re durable, stable and have functional drainage holes.

Concrete containers are useful too, being a lot heavier and more robust. Because it’s alkaline, concrete can be risky for limehaters such as azaleas or camellias. But you can use it for almost everything else. Timber is lighter but still robust for half tubs, troughs or raised beds.

It may not be as durable as other materials, if left outdoors all winter. But it should still last for years.

STRONG AND STABLE 

Whatever they’re made from, containers must be stable — especially in a windy garden.

If you arrange them in groups, make sure those at the back are easy to reach for watering and dead-heading.

Planted containers need a low centre of gravity. I’ve seen beautifully tall, elegant ones which would surely topple unless judiciously planted. For low-growing or trailing plants they’d look gorgeous. But any tall plant might pull them over.

With containers in breezy positions, consider adding water retaining gel to the compost. You can also buy ‘self-watering’ hanging baskets which have small reservoirs of water at their bases but still drain freely.

When you assemble your containers, group varieties and colours that complement each other. Have plenty of trailers and sprawlers, as well as upright stems to give height.

When you buy potting compost for containers go for quality. Peat-free products are better for the environment.

Melcourt SylvaGrow Peat Free is endorsed by the RHS. Oh, and don’t forget plant food.