Coleus a la mode
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After four years, the green and blue pot looked like it required some new plants. I took out the old plants that were in need of more root space, divided the Japanese
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fern and planted out the rest in the garden. The container itself had peeled off some of its paint, revealing a terra cotta pot underneath. When I view the patina on the container, I consider it quite fitting for a garden setting.
Solenostemon 'Felix' is a dark coleus growing on the left and Solenostemon 'Gold Giant' is the one on the right. Bacopa 'Gold n' Pearls' grows at their feet and Athyrium niponicum, the Japanese painted fern, grows behind the coleus and can not be seen from this angle.
Planted later than normal, the bacopa did not get a chance to fill out as it usually does. However, the coleus grew fast and after pinching the leaves a few times, they filled out quickly. I planted the pot underneath a large rhododendron shrub where it receives morning light and afternoon shade.
Recommended container gardening books.
Debra Teachout-Teashon
Photographed in author's garden.
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