Window Box Ideas
Are you running out of room in your garden? Feeling boxed in? That's terrific! A box can be quite liberating, particularly if it's a box full of flowers under your window. A form of container gardening, window boxes enable gardeners to bring bursts of color right up close to the house. Window boxes also provide gardeners with limited space an opportunity to expand their gardens. They can take your garden quite literally to another level.
Types of window boxes
Window boxes come in a wide range of styles and materials, including wooden, plastic, metal, fiberglass and terra cotta. Each has pros and cons that should be carefully considered before selecting them. Many come with suitable hardware to secure them to the side of the house. Building your own window boxes can also be a fun and rewarding weekend project. Window boxes look best when they are at least as long the window is wide, or even a few inches longer. Also try to choose a style that compliments the architecture of your home.
For window boxes constructed from wood or other materials susceptible to weathering and decay, a liner helps them to last longer. Investing in a liner or other container to slip into the window box also facilitates planting, especially for hard-to-reach boxes. Simply place the plants and soil in the liner, then drop the whole thing into the outside box. When it comes time to clean it out in the winter, just lift out the liner and you're done.
Planting a window box
Planting a window box is much like planting any other container. You must consider the hours of sunlight it will receive and choose plants accordingly. Ensure it has proper drainage so that water will not collect on the bottom and rot the plants' roots. Use a bagged soil-less mix available at most garden centers. It is relatively lightweight, free of insects and diseases and has a good water-holding capacity. Because soil-less mixes are low in nutrients, you will need to fertilize your window box plantings regularly. If you wish, you may mix in a slow-release fertilizer before planting.
Window Boxes Articles, Videos & HowTos
Window boxes also provide gardeners with limited space an opportunity to expand their gardens. They can take your garden quite literally to another level.
With just a few minor changes to your gardening routine, seniors suffering from arthritis and other ailments can have the option to garden again.
A window box is a great way to garden when you have limited yard space, like the convenience of reaching out the kitchen window to pick fresh herbs or are housebound. You can grow most small plants in a window box.
Gardening: One of life's most simple pleasures. That is, until pain overrides the joy. For most Seniors living with arthritis, high blood pressure, or diabetes, gardening is often a fine past time left as a memory.
Container gardening has been elevated to an art form, one that can easily be employed in gardens of every size. Whether you have a large yard or an apartment balcony at your disposal, there are plants that thrive in containers.
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