Above: Pennisetum ‘Princess’ and Thai Black Banana tree.
Inset: Black Magic Elephant Ears. Opposite: Pennisetum ‘Prince’
is the
grass. The fillers are lobelia, orange gera- nium. And Euphorbia ‘White Diamond’. The trailers are English ivy and Ipomoea (sweet potato vine) ‘Lime’.
at least from places beyond our imagination just a few short years ago. When planning your giant wonder, try to choose plants
T
that enjoy similar moisture, light and fertility conditions. Elephant ears (Colocasia) for example, prefer rich, humusy wet soils in full sun or part shade. Impatiens enjoy the same conditions. Canna, on the other hand, like well drained rich to sandy soil and at least 6 hours of sunlight, so pair them with golden creeping Jenny, for example. Rubber tree plants enjoy a bit of dappled shade and a thor-
ough drenching followed by a drying out. Geraniums like a similar climate Bananas, too, like rich, light, well-drained soil that is
allowed to dry out then receive a generous watering with lots of water and lots of sunlight although they can tolerate some shade. They like the potting mix to be fairly acidic from 5.5
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hey’re lush. They’re large. They’re exotic. Very large containers are taking over as the focal point in the garden and on the patio and deck, and what we are growing in them is out of this world -- or
Above: Banana plant with several types of coleus and some blue mealy cup salvia (Salvia farinacea) which comes into its own later in summer and stays until freeze up. Coleus ‘Tilt-a-Whirl’ yellow and lime variety to the right.
is the
to 6.5. They grow fast and take up a lot of space so you may want to plant them alone. The Pennisetums are not too fussy and will grow well
in almost any a moist-well drained soil, in full sun to light shade. You can plant them with petunias or any other sun loving plant, but rmemeber Prince and Princess get very large and may overpower the pot by fall.
Rubber tree plants Think big, bold, black leaves. Rubber tree plants, once
the denizens of dark dens are now stepping out on the deck and the front walk to show off their shiny magnificence. The variety ‘Black Prince’ is especially attractive. Its dark leaves emerge in a red sheath that looks like a flower until it unfurls. ‘Burgundy’ is a similar variety with dark green to bronze leaves. These plants take centre stage in tall contain- ers surrounded, perhaps, by a spilling of Ipomoea batata or sweet potato vine. You could use one of the dark leafed sweet potato vines such as ‘Blackie’ for a tone-on-tone effect or the bright lime green ‘Sweet Caroline Light Green’, which will make the bronze leaves really pop. During hot summers,
SPRING 2013 19
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