Monthly Archives: May 2024

How to Care for Your Windowboxes

Window boxes can provide plentiful gardening space in the city, even without a yard. Whether you live in an apartment, condominium, or row house, you can add window boxes for extra gardening, and with proper care, your window boxes can yield a delicious harvest, fragrant herbs, or stunning flowers for you to enjoy.

About Windowboxes

Windowboxes aren’t just for windows, and there are many different shapes and designs to choose from. Over-the-railing boxes are ideal for decks and balconies, and wall-hanging boxes can make use of any vertical space. These versatile containers are available in different sizes, from small, compact containers to much deeper, larger options for even bigger vegetables and multiple plants.

Wood is the traditional material for window boxes and is still a favorite choice for many spaces. Plastic and resin models are also available and can be lighter weight, and metal frames with moss or coir liners are attractive rustic options. You can even get creative with windowboxes and choose non-traditional styles, such as repurposing garden boots, apron pockets, tin pails, or other fun containers to make a windowbox that suits your space and style.

While decorative flowers remain a popular favorite for window boxes, you can grow anything you like in these containers. An herb garden is ideal for these small spaces, or you can choose miniature versions of all your favorite vegetables and fruits. Mix plants up for a diverse windowbox, and use taller plants, such as climbing vines or grasses, to add more height, while trailing plants such as creepers and dangling vines can spill out of the space for more drama.

Best Windowbox Care

No matter what you plant in your window box, you will want to give it the proper care for excellent growth and the most vibrant plants.

  • Mount the box securely.
    Use the proper fasteners to mount your window box, and take into account its full weight as plants grow. Freshly watered, damp soil will be heavier, and the box needs to be secure to hold that weight. If you are placing the box on a railing, be sure the railing is sturdy and the box is not tipped or angled unsafely.
  • Choose appropriate plants for the space.
    Consider the sunlight your box will get when choosing which plants to grow in the space. The sun will shift throughout the season, and you want to be sure your plants have the levels of sunlight they require for their best growth. Also be sure the box provides enough depth for adequate root growth so the plants will be their healthiest, and be aware that windowboxes may be subject to extra heat reflecting off glass or walls, so heat-tolerant plants are always a good choice.
  • Use high-quality, moisture-retaining soil.
    Windowboxes need good quality potting soil to nurture plants, and which soil you choose will depend on whether you are growing vegetables, flowers, succulents, or herbs. Soil mixes with moisture-retaining granules are a great choice for window boxes and will help keep the plants watered so they stay lush, beautiful, and productive.
  • Water the box properly.
    Windowboxes can dry out more quickly than traditional garden spaces and may need to be watered daily or even more than once a day depending on the box size, how the soil retains moisture and the watering needs of your plants. A watering wand can help you reach windowboxes in more difficult places, or consider adding water globes to the box for a practical splash of color that will keep your plants watered.
  • Choose slow-release fertilizers for extra nourishment.
    A slow-release, liquid fertilizer is a great option for window boxes and will help provide all the nutrition your plants need. Choose a fertilizer blend that suits your plants’ requirements, and apply it once a week or at whatever rate is recommended for your box size and type of plants.
  • Groom your windowboxes regularly.
    Because windowboxes are such a small space, it can be easy to keep them looking their best with regular deadheading and other maintenance. Trim and prune plants as needed to help them retain their shape, always using good-quality hand tools with sharp blades for safe, smooth cuts. If you are growing edibles, harvest your produce regularly to encourage even more production.
  • Protect windowboxes from sudden cold.
    Just like any plants, windowbox gardens can be damaged by cold snaps. Invest in appropriate plant covers to shield the boxes if the temperatures drop, and even consider bringing them indoors temporarily if a freeze is threatening. Adding a layer of insulation to the inside of a generous box, such as lining it with foam board, can also help protect delicate roots from possible cold and retain moisture throughout the season.

Add More Enjoyment to Your Windowboxes

Don’t be afraid to think outside the box with your window boxes. Any urban garden – even a small one at your windows or on your railings – can have quaint touches, such as adding a small bird feeder, a fairy garden, or a decorative garden stake or flag. These accents can help you personalize your box and truly make your small garden a relaxing and enjoyable space, no matter what its size or where you plant it.

Late Spring Gardener’s Calendar

Turn over your vegetable garden and add humus, mushroom compost or manure to enrich the soil.  Apply Bonide Fruit Tree Spray as buds swell and again at petal drop to all fruit trees.

Fertilize perennials with Dr. Earth Rose & Flower Fertilizer.

Continue spring cleanup.  Completely remove winter mulch.  Cultivate to remove winter weeds and debris from the planting beds, then edge.  Prepare your annual beds, and mulch landscape beds with shredded mulch, bark chips or gravel.   Apply Preen or Corn Gluten and scratch it in to prevent future weeds, or try the new Preen Mulch Plus which combines mulch and Preen and prevents weeds for up to 6 months.

Plant and transplant trees and shrubs, including roses, ground covers, and perennials (including hardy lilies and lily-of-the-valley).

Seed or sod new lawns.  Reseed bare spots in established lawns.  Keep the area moist until seedlings appear, then mow when the new grass is 3” high.

Put down a second application of Team or Tupersan (newly seeded lawns) for pre-emergent goosegrass control and control of crabgrass the rest of the year.

Transplant cool-season seedlings into the garden.  When the soil temperature reaches 60 degrees, sow warm- and cool-season vegetable and herb seeds.

Dig and divide crowded spring bulbs after they have finished blooming. Enrich the soil with compost, manure or Espoma Bulb-Tone.

Prune forsythia and other spring-flowering trees and shrubs after the flowers fall.

Place gro-thru sets and link stakes over or around peonies, grasses or any other perennials in need of support.

Check arborvitae, cedar, juniper spruce and pine for bagworms.  Hand-pick bags from the host and spray with Ortho Systemic Insecticide.

Begin summer rose care program of deadheading, spraying and watering.

Fertilize roses with Bayer All In One Rose and Flower Care or Dr Earth Rose and Flower Fertilizer, azaleas with Espoma Holly-Tone or Dr Earth Azalea/Camelia Fertilizer, and fruit trees with Dr Earth Tomato and Vegetable Fertilizer.

Deadhead bulbs, but leave foliage to mature and yellow before removing.  This will help nourish the bulb for next year’s flowering. Fertilize with Dr Earth Bulb Fertilizer.

Prune new growth on needled evergreens.

Dig and divide early blooming perennials after flowering.

Apply Encap Fast Acting Iron Plus or Bonide Liquid Iron Plus to azaleas, hollies, junipers, laurel, pines, rhododendron and spruce to provide iron for chlorophyll production by foliage.

Fertilize container plants and window boxes weekly with a Master Nursery Bud and Bloom Plant Food, or use Dynamite All Purpose Plant Food for season-long feeding, to promote healthy, vigorous plants all summer.

Pay close attention to the watering needs of these plants as well as hanging baskets, because they tend to dry out quickly on hot summer days.

Check plants for spider mite damage and treat with Bayer 3 in 1 Insect, Disease and Mite Control then alternate every 7-10 days with Bonide All-Season Oil Spray.