May Meeting – Garden Container Pots

For our May meeting we welcomed one of our very own members, Sylvie, a professional gardener, who came to speak and share her expertise on how to plant garden container pots.

Planting a Container…

Sylvie talked about the equipment needed – pots, drainage stones, compost and plants of choice – and advised us to use a variety of plants to create a mix of varieties, textures and colours, to give an interesting visual outcome.

She then demonstrated planting a patio container and three different types of hanging baskets; a regular hanging pot containing small plants, a gated basket that hold more plants, some of which dangle down, and a wire basket padded with sphagnum moss and compost. Sylvie advised everyone to wear disposable rubber gloves for hygiene and protective reasons when planting up a pot.

Container Care

Once planting was done, she talked about choosing a spot to put them and watering. She told us to keep pots well-watered, every 2 days in hot weather, and watch out for the wind which also dries them out. She advised us that pots should be maintained by dead heading and keeping an eye out for evasive garden pests.

Containers are good for small gardens and can be grouped and displayed together to give the effect of raised beds. Flowers look good in containers to introduce a splash of colour, but veg, herbs and shrubs also work in pots.

A Cuppa, Cake & Raffle

The finished containers were raffled and four lucky ladies took home a lovely prize for their garden. These types of containers also make particularly good gifts.

Before the demonstration began, everyone was invited to a welcoming cup of tea, coffee or juice and a piece of millionaires’ shortbread or apple cake homemade by Emma and Shirley respectively.

All the ladies who attended enjoyed a great evening, asking lots of questions and receiving many tips from Sylvie. Happy planting everyone!

Our Next Meeting…

June’s meeting is a visit and informative evening from Elisa Foyle, aka “Plumb Mum”, which promises to be an interesting and informative evening with a few funny stories thrown in from Elisa’s plumbing ventures. Everyone is welcome, guest as well as members. Come along and splash out with the “Pipe Pirate.” A famous plumbing quote from Albert Einstein, “If I could do it all again, I’d be a plumber.”

Come join us on the evening of Thursday 12th June to get an insight into your home plumbing.