Make the most of your small garden

Make flower arrangements from a small garden

We have a smallish house on a small piece of property located on a peninsula on The Long Island Sound in Connecticut. Even though the property is small, we make the most of it by planting perennials that do well like hydrangeas that can be used for cut flowers. This year I focused on plantings in the containers that could easily be used in small arrangments for outdoor dinner parties. I chose only colors that would compliment each other and the earthiness of our home’s exterior. I love to mix the icy blue hues of Dusty Miller and Licorice with black potato vine mixed with hydrangeas even before they are in bloom.

Rustic arrangements using garden flowers, and repurposed jars covered in kraft paper and twine

To make a few small arrangements for the table and around the house, we used only what we have growing in the yard and the planters. I covered the jars with brown kraft paper and tied it with twine.

I make mini flower arrangments for bathrooms

chartreuse, burgundy and icy blue hues with garnet hill table linens

Colors that inspired the table linens

The colors of the plants inspired the linens I chose from Garnet Hill. I love the generous size of the linen tablecloth that covers our new IKEA table kissing the ground. The Tablecloth is Ochre with Brown trim and we paired it with the Relaxed Linen Napkins in Tawny Port/Burgundy.

Tips on Planting Containers without Drainage holes

One of the questions I am asked most whenever I post a photo of our front porch is about the planters and do they have drainage holes? For our porch, I only select planters that do not have drainage. The reason for this is that when I water the plants in the containers I do not want it to drain onto my porch. However, It’s important to create this drainage inside the planter. I use a variety of plant liners creating a planter that can drain into the planter. It takes some creative maneuvering to find the right height and size for liners. I invert the bottom liner, sometimes on top of a brick or saucers to add height. I then plant the top liner placing it on top of the inverted liner. Then when I water, there’s space for the plant to drain.

How to create drainage inside a container

Save all of your liners from plants that you bring home from the nursery. This year it has been especially challenging to find them in the stores and it’s not something you want to order online. Finding the right size is hard enough in person, buying online is nearly impossible. I like to take my planters with me when buying the liners, but saving them is always a good idea!