To mix your own make sure you include soil, peat, sand and a slow release fertilizer.

Maintenance

You'll need to pay close attention to your container grown plants -- much more than plants in your garden beds. The soil will dry out more quickly so frequent watering it a must. You'll also need to fertilize more frequently. Water in morning or evening whenever soil is almost dry and water thoroughly until water comes out bottom drainage holes.

One thing I really love about container gardening is mobility. If a particular grouping doesn''t work you can simply move your pots and change your garden design.

Have fun, experiment and be creative!

Even an established perrenial garden may have spots where little is blooming at one time or another. Annuals are a great way to fill those gaps and keep color in your garden. They bloom from summer to fall and with a bit of dead heading you can continue to coax them back.

Annuals are simple to start from seed which makes them very cost efficient. You can certainly purchase annual bedding plants from a local garden center, but mail order or seeds at garden center offer you a much wider variety than your standard petunia, pansy or snapdragon.

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