Winter Pansies and Violas in the Balcony Baskets

It’s the time of year when the flower baskets on the balcony need updating. The summer annuals were looking a bit worn, overgrown, and tired. The only plants that will remain in the baskets are the spikes and the ivy. Hopefully the spikes will survive the winter. So we drove over to American Plant earlier in the week to pick up an assortment of winter pansies and violas. The amount of flowers we need is minimal compared to the huge garden we used to have in the Midwest and even for the patio garden we had on Capitol Hill. All we have now is a very small balcony and the flower baskets with coco liners are strapped to the back of the seats. The flowers will continue to face outward until winter arrives. Then the Christmas branches and greens will be added and the flowers turned towards us so we can enjoy the arrangements from our living room. It’s getting more difficult to bend and move about since my knees aren’t what they used to be! And this time I didn’t need to replace the plastic in the coco liners because they were leaking a bit too much in the spring. So I removed all of the annuals and decided how to arrange the colors and started planting. It’s amazing how just a small amount of live plants and flowers makes everything look so much nicer - and so much neater. The backdrop of the fall colors in the park made the flowers even prettier. It’s hard to believe another season has come and gone. My husband was just saying how glad he is that we live in Virginia where there are actually four seasons. 

American Plant Balcony Baskets

It was about time to finally get some flowers for our balcony baskets! When we lived in the Midwest we wouldn’t even think about it until at least Memorial Day. We just hadn’t gotten around to it yet. So yesterday we took a ride to American Plant in search of the best annuals we could find. We are rather limited because we only have three coco lined window baskets that we hang from the back of the patio furniture. The ivy and liriope didn’t survive this year so we would also need to find greenery replacements. The place was rather busy as we made our way up and down the isles. I used to love planting in our several gardens in the Midwest - especially the pots on the patio and the window boxes. I do go about it quite methodically - each one usually has a tall item like the spike, a flowing trailing item like the ivy, a larger bloomed flower like gerbera daisy or geranium, and then a few different smaller decorative items like pansies or marigolds. My husband is more in tune to the color. He actually thought a purple flower would be nice in memory of my mom. That was her favorite color. Then he always likes yellow and red and always white - “gentle colors.” For whatever reason I was having a hard time coordinating the flowers. Before planting this year I removed all of the dirt because the coco liners were leaking too much last year and the plastic needed to be replaced. It was more work than I thought and was quite a messy situation. It’s hard to plant on a balcony! You have to be aware of not only your space but your neighbor’s as well. In the end it looks good but I probably needed to put in more fresh dirt which I didn’t have. There are a couple of bald spots that could do with a filler. Hopefully the plants will all do well and grow nicely. Whenever we sit on the balcony it just adds a bit of life to a sterile environment. Flowers are just so pretty. 

Preparing the Balcony for Winter

It’s that time of year again. It’s getting to be too cold to sit out on the balcony. That means we need to bring in the cushions. We used to cover the seating with tarp like material. But for the last two years there have been decorative coco lined window box containers hanging on the backs of the chairs - so the covers don’t fit. Usually the loveseat and chair sit across from each other. But now we turn the chairs to face out so that the window boxes face our living room. That way, we can see whatever is in the baskets from inside of the house. Last year we ordered some liriope, ivy and violas to plant from Ginkgo Gardens in DC. The liriope and ivy survived the summer season, and we got a few winter pansies to replace the annuals. I think I prefer the violas to pansies because they have more flowers. But the best part about this floral arrangement is when Christmas gets a little closer. We always like to dress the boxes with Christmas greenery, sticks, and some decorations that are suitable for outside. Last year we were stuck at home for obvious reasons. This year we are hoping to make a family trip to central Virginia. So I’ll probably just put up decorations outdoors. So as long as we are able to see the “garden” from the living room it will be just fine and is really all we need. 

Changing the Balcony Flower Baskets

It’s that time of year again. The balcony coco lined flower baskets need an update. The summer annuals are fading. Luckily the ivy and the liriope continue to do well. We planted them last year in late fall and they survived the winter and did well all year. So we took a ride to American Plant to find some winter pansies that would last in to the holiday season. With that in mind we found six white, yellow, and red/yellow plants. It was harder to remove the annuals than I thought it would be - but I should have left the gerbera daisy intact. It might have survived the winter, but I didn’t give it a chance to find out. That makes me disappointed! It also filled an empty space in the basket. Anyway, I ended up pulling out the old, then planting the new pansies. The baskets are tied to the back of the love seat and chair because we can’t have anything hanging from the balcony rails. Once the cushions are removed for the season we turn the chairs outward so the flowers face us in the living room. When Christmas comes we add the traditional greens and sticks. So for now the flowers look nice. I may cut an ivy and root it to fill in the blank space. The seasons come and go faster than ever. I’m not sure I like that. 

Balcony Railing Flowers and Condo Rules Don’t Mix

Several of our neighbors have flower containers hanging from the balcony railings. I have often commented to my husband that it didn’t seem safe - especially if the containers are hanging toward the sidewalk side rather than inside the balcony. So when we put our three little “window boxes” up last week, we attached them so they faced us on the balcony. When the condo weekly newsletter came out yesterday, there was a note of caution and warning reminder about the rules of the condo and balconies - nothing shall hang from the railings - period. I should have re read the bylaws when I thought about doing this, but didn’t. So my husband and I cut off all the zip locks. But rather than get rid of the containers we had the brilliant idea to hang them from the back of the furniture. It just so happened that we had three spots to hang three containers - with our zip locks - on the backs of the chair and the loveseat. The furniture is quite heavy so it can tolerate the weight of a filled “window box.” In the end it looks quite nice - maybe even better - because the focus is on the flowers rather than the cocoliners. The containers are not cluttering up the floor and it essentially meets the same purpose. We have a little bit of a garden and can view the flowers both from inside the house and when we sit outside. I wonder how long it will take for all the other law breakers to change their ways? Only time will tell.