Container Gardens: Extending Color

Fabulous and fun, containers filled with bright blooms are easy to maintain and thrive with the right care. They're great additions to any patio, yards or landscape. Before summer's heat and dry conditions get the best of them, give them what they need. Keep containers in tip top shape with these easy tips.

Here's how to extend the life of containers for a summer of color.

** Deadhead. Use pruners or shears to snip off dead or dying flowers, stems and foliage. This is called deadheading. Don't be afraid to clip stems back a little to encourage new growth. This not only makes the plant look better, but it also helps encourage more blooms.

** Want even less work? You can always opt for plants that do the deadheading on their own, like Million Bells. Feed. Feed established containers with Bloom! Espoma liquid fertilizer to promote & prolong flowering. Simply flip, fill and feed, sprinkle granular Espoma Plant-tone on the soil surface and gently work in.

** Water. Containers need to be drenched - generally every day - and make sure to get the roots. Water until it pours from the drainage holes. Be sure to empty saucers to keep roots from getting waterlogged.

** Replace. If all else fails, simply replace the leggy or tired plants in your container garden with late-season bloomers, like ornamental cabbage, coneflowers or sedum. Now that your containers are taken care of, sit back and enjoy the heat of summer!