Low-Maintenance Outdoor Plants?
Hi guys. Can anyone recommend some low-maint outdoor plants? I’m thinking both for flower boxes and medium-sized planters, even up to small-tree size. I take a lot of trips so low-maint is important… also, which plants can survive NY winters?
Hi guys. Can anyone recommend some low-maint outdoor plants? I’m thinking both for flower boxes and medium-sized planters, even up to small-tree size. I take a lot of trips so low-maint is important… also, which plants can survive NY winters?
I have wind and fairly brutal sun on my roof terrace. I spend some time with watering, weeding, etc. but also experiment on what does best with the least servicing. The place came with a boxwood and a heuchera/coral bells. Neither needs much water and seems to thrive. I’ve let the boxwood, which was originally trimmed into a neat little sphere, grow naturally since I wanted something with bulk.
Every year I try for a wall of green with climbers and low bushy stuff – I did it one year with morning glory, moon flower and sweet corn (super water intensive but bulks up nicely). Tomatoes do well – I start them inside from seed.. Nasturtium does well in the place where I get a small amount of shade, as does the hydrangea I got for Easter years ago. Both need a fair amount of water.
Sweet William and Foxglove did ok this year, but I find them a little fussy looking, especially the Sweet William.
Geraniums !!
Great color, they last, don’t need alot of TLC. There are many different types, they can be colorful, some smell great, some can cascade down …..you can also grow your own geraniums by snipping off a piece from a good sized stem (getting rid of any flowers growing on that stem) letting the bottom dry out for a day or two….then just stick it in the soil….make sure it stays moist for a week or two…then watch it grow. I had a huge garden full of home grown geraniums…of all kinds and shapes.
Have fun!
We have strawberries, 2 varieties of peppers, 3 of tomaotoes, blueberries, lavender, raspberries, mint, oregano, rosemary, lots of flowers, all in platers. Yes, I have to water at least every other day, but the care is worth it. All those palnts that should bear fruit are doing so splendidly. We have tons of strawberries, very much more delicious than anythings I’ve gotten at Fairway. And the lavender has stayed outdoors year round, buried in snow in the winter, and has gotten bigger each year. Well worth the effort. Be sure the planters are big enough, and every now and then use a good plant food. I bought something @ Lowes.
We have strawberries, 2 varieties of peppers, 3 of tomaotoes, blueberries, lavender, raspberries, mint, oregano, rosemary, lots of flowers, all in platers. Yes, I have to water at least every other day, but the care is worth it. All those palnts that should bear fruit are doing so splendidly. We have tons of strawberries, very much more delicious than anythings I’ve gotten at Fairway. And the lavender has stayed outdoors year round, buried in snow in the winter, and has gotten bigger each year. Well worth the effort. Be sure the planters are big enough, and every now and then use a good plant food. I bought something @ Lowes.
For flower boxes, you may want to get some inexpensive annuals (which will not overwinter)–just get some suitable for the amount of sun you have. Salvia, petunias, impatiens and ivys are easy
I generally have to water my flower boxes every three days unless there’s been a lot of rain. There’s a product called Soil Moist that you can add to your containers to retain water–it definitely helps.
Even very sturdy plants can be tough to keep all year in a container; definitely get something really cold-hardy. Try some inexpensive things and see how they do over the winter.
What is key to making containers work is to provide PLENTY of drainage. Because in winter you want the ran and snow to drain and not have the soil wet becoming a giant cube of ice. If you are planting in containers make sure you have plants with the hardiness of lower zones so lets say we are zone 6b get a plant that goes to zone 5or 4 that will assure you that the roots can handle the cold. Its the root the healthy the root the plant thrives you damage the root the plant gets sick and dies. By all means look at sun or shade but remember the NYC adds heat via the buildings and cement so be aware that the city can cook things even in the shade.
Are you planting in sun or shade (or partial amounts of either)? Dry shade or wet shade? How deep will your containers be? Most of the answers above assume that you’re planting in shade, but you haven’t specified. Both hosta and astilbe are shade plant stalwarts. Hostas are indestructible, but astilbes have shallow roots that need to be kept moist. One of my personal favorites is heuchera, available in a great variety of foliage. A good way for you to become familiar with plants that might work for you is to look at online plant catalogs. Enter such search categories as “shade” or “container”, see which plants appeal to you, then read further about hardiness, light preferences, zone, etc.
Pachysandra are super cheap and invincible. Lamiums grow and spread really quickly.
To clarify above statement about hardiness, we are zone 6B, kinda pushing at zone 7, depends on the microclimate. I have a lot of catmint and lavender coming back year after year. Rosemary is definitely perennial on the south side of my building. I certainly wouldn’t leave it outside in a container, though.