Ready, set, show with these great combinations

If you’re unsure as to what to put in them, you can’t go wrong with wave petunias for sunny locations or impatiens for the shade. Both are available in more than a dozen different shades.

But for those who prefer to stand out from the crowd, there are many alternatives. Quiz your local garden centre or nursery staff on what’s new and suitable for the location you have in mind, or go online and download a few ‘recipes’ for nice combinations.

Provenwinners.com is one site that provides fail-safe container recipes for 12” pots. Following are a few ideas:

I’ve always been fond of monochromatic plantings, especially those featuring white flowers. Several pots of these would be perfect for a summer wedding or anniversary and are well suited for hot, dry situations.

‘White Celebrations’: plant two white supertunias, two Laguna white lobelia and two Diamond Frost euphorbia. The euphorbia has received much media hype in the last few years for its non-stop, season-long production of clouds of airy white flowers.

‘Blowing in the Breeze’ features graceful movement with one pot of Mexican feather grass, one Cape Town Blue Felicia Daisy, one ivy and two Scarlet Verbena to complete the planting.

‘Chantilly Lace’ is created by planting two plants each of Lavender Lace Cuphea, Iresine (Bloodleaf) and Intensia Lilac Rose Phlox. The effect is flowing with shades of pink, burgundy and cherry.

‘Cottage Country Purples’ presents a neat and tidy look with one plant each of Supertunia Mini Blue Veined Petunia, Giant Snowflake Sutera (Bacopa) and Superbena Purple Verbena. The blue-veined petunia has a lovely deep throat of dark purple surrounded by white petals.

‘Glorious Song’ has a somewhat shaggy appearance with one each of Blackie Ipomoea (Sweet Potato Vine) and Elijah Blue Festuca grass draping over the edges. Supertunia Royal Magenta provides the colour and a multitude of blooms throughout the summer.

‘Great Balls of Fire’ is a vibrant mix of two Flambe Chrysocephalam (Strawflower) and TukanaDeep Red (Verbena).

All of the above should have plants positioned an equal distance apart in the container. Regular fertilizing is important for success. Ideally, use a water-soluble fertilizer at half strength every time you water.