Lovin' Container Gardening!

Gazing out my office window at the snowy landscape and twiggy shrubs, it's hard to imagine that spring's a month away. So planning out my garden has begun in earnest.

Thankfully, I found a cool new garden website, BloomIQ.com that takes the guesswork out of planning and plant selection before you shop!

I love the suggestions and planting combos from collections like butterfly, window boxes, containers, hummingbirds and more. Plus the site helps you match plants you want with your personal style and color preferences that are right for your conditions and zone, before you head out to your garden center. Easy.

I clicked on containers because, well, I love the ease, colors and styles of container gardening. Plus they'll be perfect in my rather small and oddly shaped garden space.

I'm partial to the new lite-weight poly containers from Campania International, Amalfi Garland Planters, because they're gorgeous, well-crafted, and easy to lift and move! Yay!

This year I'm planting the culinary herb, Lemon Thyme. It's great for flavoring poultry and seafood and veggies and well, has a strong, sweet lemony scent and rosy lavender flowers.

And, if I get really industrious, I hear it makes scented potpourri and sachets. (I have yet to make a sachet- will let you know how that works!)

I'm also drooling over Big Leaf hydrangea. I want them. Plant lust.

Looks stunning in landscapes, and with a large container, those beautiful white flowers will cascade and trail, brightening up my sad, forlorn-looking garden spaces.

Then there's Japanese Forest grass and Ornamental Pepper and Greek Oregano, and the new SuperNaturals grafted tomatoes...

Yep. I'm going to need at least a half dozen or so containers. Happiness.

~Lynne

GMG