Selecting Beauty: Choosing the Perfect Flowers for Your Window Boxes

 

As you drive past a well-kept home, the striking beauty of window boxes might jump out at you. These container gardens hang below prominent windows on any floor. Most homes will have a balance of boxes across either side of the front door to create some symmetry to the exterior aesthetic. If you’ve always wanted to try out a window box on your home, dive into this gardening niche with some education to back it up. The best flowers for flower window boxes are almost too numerous to count. It all depends on your style and decor.

Trailing Varieties

Most gardeners are thrilled to try a window box because it offers opportunities that don’t exist with other locations. Plants with a trailing habit won’t work on the ground because pests will only damage those long stems and leaves. Add strawberries, clematis and creeping myrtle into your window boxes. You’ll have the benefit of trailing stems that add character to your exterior walls. Simply keep the growth controlled with some minor pruning. The cut sections will only invigorate the plant to grow faster and produce more blossoms.
Surprise Visitors

You may love bulbs for all of their amazing flowers, but they only pop up once a year. A window box full of bulbs will be barren for many months. Solve this problem by mixing up some perennial flowers with bulbs buried below them. Plant bacopa, verbena and bidens in your boxes with several bulbs spread out below them. As the proper season arrives, the bulbs will spring to life between your perennials. You’ll never have a boring window as everyone awaits the joy of blooming daffodils, lilies and hyacinths.

Climbing Opportunities

If you envision a flower box that gives rise to blossoms that surround the window, you’ll need climbers. Wondering about what flowers are good for window boxes also includes their growing ability. Climbers will get out of control unless you train them around a window frame or added trellis. Keep them pruned, and use some of the cuttings to start new boxes. The growth potential is almost infinite when you care for the plants on a regular basis. Trumpet vines, honeysuckle, jasmine and Carolina jessamine are examples of flowering climbers that will add personality to the home.

Annual Selections

Annual plants live fast and die within their first season. Although this short life may seem too quick, the window box benefits with a constantly changing appearance. Fill your boxes with begonias, impatiens and pansies to really lift the spirit of your exterior. These annuals have spectacular flowers that last through the spring and summer. Once they die back, you can try other annuals or perennials as a change. Don’t forget that some annuals have tubers as main roots, such as begonias, so another sprouting period might be possible with these species.

Mixing it Up

If you’re a fan of flowers and practical gardening, mix up your window box with both blossoms and vegetable gardening. Fill the back section of the box with tomatoes and peppers. The tall foliage collects sunlight for future edibles while the rest of the box might house shallow-rooted flowers, such as geraniums.

As you create your window boxes, be mindful of the soil being added to the space. Because the volume is minimal, the soil must be packed with nutrients and varied enough in texture to allow water to move through the spaces. Add fertilizer, soil enhancements and more before you plant those wondrous flowers. They’ll shine with bright colors throughout the season with roots dipped in prime soil.

Matt Buquoi works at FlowerWindowBoxes.com, a company that manufactures premium-quality, no-rot flower window boxes offered at affordable prices. You can visit their site to learn more about the benefits of their PVC flower boxes and planters over more traditional gardening supplies.

 

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