For the first time in my life I have a balcony and I would love to put some plants out there to make it look prettier and more welcoming.

Does anyone have any suggestions as far as what kind of plants do well potted outside? I'm going to need some plants that can withstand a wide temperature range and I would like a mixture of flowering plants and small trees. My lease dictates that none of the plants can be over 5 feet tall.


So...any suggestions?

I can't help you at all.

I hope that helps!

2the9s said:

you're a meanie.

you're just jealous because i have a balcony and you don't.

No job is too big or too small for the Garden Weasel.

box woods can be a nice investment that typically can with stand year round temps as they are evergreens. Also they provide a nice architectural element hen trimmed in nice shapes.
Impatiens are nice seasonal flowers that look great planted in masses and come in a variety of colours.

horatio said:

thank you! I'll keep my eyes peeled for those when I go looking tomorrow.

boxwoods

ThreadBare said:

that sounds kinda sexual.


just speaking the truth.

horatio said:

those are cute. i think they would look nice out there.

i think i'd also like a small bird feeder and bird bath but I'm afraid that they'll just attract big ugly pigeons that will roost on my balcony and poo all over it. And then I'll end up getting cryptococcus pneumonia and that'll be no fun.

Orgnote. I can give you tons of suggestions, I just need to know about the condition of your balcony. You can mix unusual plants with the common ones to get lasting and dramtic results.... I just need to know your dedication level

impatiens


I dont know where you live, but typically you are not going to find anything good in greenhouses until spring.

Then you will want to buy right away if you want to get first dibs on the good stock...people typically buy up the good stuff right away.


boxwoods are expensive because they had a bad previous year(drought), luckily I was at lowes and happened to spot some decent ones for about 35 dollars a piece, they were about a foot around. I bought up four. They are huge now over summer they got to be about 2 feet around. They can easily be trimmed down to what ever size.
But later in the year smaller ones were selling for something like 45-60 dollars each.

Also herbs like rosemary, thyme, and basil make great potted plants, they smell good and you can cook with them. Tomatoes can also be decorative too.
[Edited 2/16/08 19:14pm]

JasmineFire said:

its always a plus if you make it simple, which will likely add to the attractiveness of your building.
simple = elegant.
Thinks masses of a couple items. IMO

JasmineFire said:

Be sure NOT to read my last orgnote to you that way, missy.

You must have missed all the pay-TV commercials for the Garden Weasel. It seems no summer day at my grandma's was complete without the GW ad popping onto the TV screen at least once an hour.

ThreadBare said:

I's sowry...

OK

Potted trees...
Cherry willow


Hardy mini banana


Wiegela ... this baby can take abuse.

This is a cool bush... scott's bush easy and grows 2'x2' stays perfectly rounded and looks beautiful in a pot.


And yes many bonsai's can be easy enough to care for once you know how.

You could always do a potted herb garden...some chives, basil, rosemary, leaf lettuce and nasturtium (for color). That way you have something purty and you can eat it too.

pearle said:

YES! and lavender or strawberries too if you wanted, they sell the special multi-slotted herb pots in places like Home-depot.

you can put lights in your boxwoods during the holidays or year round too.

pearle said:

I was going to suggest the exact same thing!

HERB GARDEN Eat what you grow

and make sure you have a jasmine tree/plant
the smell of the little flowers is incredible

Where do you live? That's the most important thing to know...

Mach said:

Mach has a great idea, and in your planting zone, here are a couple of suggestions for fragrant flowering trees/vines.

Angel Trumpet plant... this variety is a double bloom.



Jasmine... (not the pink Chilean variety though, it has no fragrance, I owned the pink) I would try a white classic variety like this..




Then there's always Gardenia which I love



mixed pots incorporating ornamental grasses, petunia, begonia,silver artesmia, hen&chicks, succulents,sedum, verbena,day lily, roses, gerbena daisy...etc. for sunny spots.

Vinca, potato plants, huchera, cyclamen, toad lily, jacobs ladder, orchids, pothos, dwarf japanese iris,viola, anemones, astilbe, geranium,helleborus, lily of the valley etc. for shady spots.

Some plants you can do both, I like to mix all kinds of plants in pots according to bloom time, leaf texture and color

You can get great ideas at you local nursery.
[Edited 2/17/08 8:00am]

Genesia said:

I think she' a planting zone 7-8.

paintedlady said:

Gotcha. Well...pretty much anything will work there!

Also for your zone you can do bulbs like canas, calla lily, or ranunculas.


can't spell
[Edited 2/17/08 7:43am]

Genesia said:

She can plant stuff that I can't.... she's I'm a zone 6.

She can mix stuff like elephant ears with iris and orchids with ease... no tulips for her though

i live zone 2 so have no suggestions for year around stuff
i would, however, suggest you look at what kinds of plants you notice
other people are growing successfully. you could probably even get
cuttings from neighbors if you said you wanted to start. helps with cost.

if you are interested you can grow lots of vegetables in containers.
i've even heard of growing potatoes in a bag of topsoil. you just make a small x's
to stick the seed potatoes through the plastic and monitor when they need water.
cucumbers, peppers, peas, beans, tomatoes, cantaloupe, carrots... lots of stuff can be grown in container.

strawberries from either a hanging basket or pot


i would also suggest starting your own compost. less waste you send out
and you will be able to amend your own soil once it gets going. either worm or traditional.


if you get to where watering by watering can is tedious you can get a faucet adapter so you can water from a hose directly from the sink.

yeah like an herb garden or some potted herbs or something, ya know you can eat them. Like a cow.

Thank you everyone! I had no idea that I had so many options!

Later today I'm going to post a picture of my balcony to give you all an idea of what I'm working with. It's not a very big balcony and only 1/3rd of it can be covered with plants as per my lease ().

Right now I'm definitely leaning towards the jasmine and strawberries and I know I would also like an ornamental tree.

I'm about to heads out to run some more errands but I'll be back with the picture of my balcony later on.

Thanks again, guys!