Shape and Outline of Plants
Choosing the right containers for your patio, balcony, and basement (or wherever) should be a pleasurable experience. Deciding on which plants to grow in containers can be interesting and even exciting, especially since the options are so varied.
We have all seen pots bursting with geraniums or bearing a single column-shaped conifer that hardly changes its appearance all through the year, and whilst each can be very successful they are perhaps rather well-worn images.
It’s certainly possible to be more adventurous, since there are many plants of all types and sizes that lend themselves very well to container gardening whether in sunshine or shade, on a grand/small scale, on a permanent or temporary basis. However, just because it is horticultural possible for a plant to flourish in a container does not, as far as we are concerned, automatically qualify it for recommendation. After all, we are considering container gardening as an art, not a horticultural exercise alone. We believe that the visual aspect of container gardening is vital – that planted containers are a design feature of the area in which they are placed, however small that may be.
The composition of pot and plant or plants together is going to take the form of a complete ornamental feature in its own right – one that will probably be seen from many perspectives – and therefore shape and balance are two vital bye-words. Some simple guidelines on what constitutes good shape and a well-balanced composition are given later, but it is essential to emphasize their importance before moving on to talk specifically about plants that you may choose to grow.
