The Liriope is Blooming

It’s nice to have even the tiniest of gardens. In the Midwest we had multiple gardens, window boxes and pots. It was a full time job keeping everything in check. Our Capitol Hill condo had a small patio with a nice sized space for planting vegetables and flowers. Now that we live in northern Virginia our balcony is quite small, but we still have at least a way to plant seasonal flowers. On the back of the very heavy iron loveseat and chair we attached three window boxes with coconut liners. At Christmas time they are filled with seasonal greens and sticks and pansies. Last year we also planted ivy for flowing effect and also the perennial liriope for height. I wasn’t sure if they would last in to spring and eventually bloom. The liriope were cut back in spring and it took a while for the leaves to come back. One basket is ahead of the other two. And finally - about two weeks or so ago - the tiny purple flowers started to show and are now blooming. It’s such a treat to see something come back to life - especially in a window box. My husband has been keeping the boxes well watered because the coconut liners leak a lot. I’m not sure things would be looking this good if we weren’t home every day. So I’m hoping the liriope bloom in the other two boxes as well. We’ll keep our fingers crossed. 

Fall/Winter Balcony Window Boxes

Our spring/summer balcony “window boxes” needed an update. The boxes are made of metal, coco lined, and hang from the back of the chair and two seater patio furniture using zip ties. The marigolds and petunias were well spent, and would soon be replaced with some hearty fillers. So we emailed our favorite place - Ginkgo Gardens - on Capitol Hill, talked up some ideas, and arranged for curbside pick up last week. It’s not easy being a gardener on a balcony. First, the seating arrangement was changed so that the baskets faced toward our living room. That way we could enjoy the flowers over the season. The summer contents were then removed, and then the variegated ivy was first cut in half and placed on either side of the container. We got one large liriope container that needed to be divided in to three parts. It’s a perennial so hopefully it will survive the winter. At last the twelve yellow and maroon colored winter pansies were planted. In the end it looked nicely balanced with tall, flowing, and fillers. We always had window boxes and containers in our Midwest home, and then a small patio garden on Capitol Hill. The nice thing about the balcony garden is that we can actually see it all day long. When the holidays approach I’m hoping to add branches and greenery. It was a fun project and kept us occupied for a while. Now we just need to make sure everything thrives. Thanks Ginkgo Gardens for helping us again. It will be nice to visit the shop and make our own selections. But this is the next best thing. 

Our Old Friends at Ginkgo Gardens

Our balcony coco lined metal “window boxes” needed a refresh. The petunias and marigolds were just about spent. We have three planters that are suspended with zip straps from the backs of the metal chair and two seater. Since we are not covering the patio furniture this year because of this flower arrangement, I thought it would be nice to create a fall/winter design where sticks and ferns could be added later on for the holidays. So I contacted Ginkgo gardens on Capitol Hill where we have shopped for both indoor and outdoor gardening needs since we moved to DC. A curbside pickup was requested via email on their web site, along with a description of what we wanted and the time frame. I received a response back that someone would be contacting us within the next day or two. Ben called to get an idea of what might work and we spent a bit of time back and forth texting photos of what he had in mind. We ended up with twelve yellow and maroon with yellow winter pansies for filler, three variegated English ivy baskets that I would cut in half for flow, and one large liriope that would be divided in to three for height. Someone from the shop then called to confirm and place the order. The next day - in the driving rain - we drove in to town and picked up curbside two boxes of lovely greenery and flowers. It’s always such a pleasure visiting Ginkgo Gardens. I really miss meandering through the shop and the outdoor garden space, but this is the next best thing.