Top 15 Blossoms for Window Boxes to Elevate Exteriors' Charm
Revitalize your home's exterior with vibrant window boxes brimming with flowers. These versatile planters are suitable for both houses and apartments, allowing you to expand your planting area and adjust the blooms according to the seasons. In spring, plant cheery pansies, while summer brings a variety of heat-loving annuals, such as those discussed below.
When opting for window boxes, consider the benefits and drawbacks of different materials. Hayrack types, featuring a metal frame and coco mat liner, present a handsome appearance but may necessitate daily watering as plants mature, particularly during the summer months. Conversely, plastic window boxes lose less water to evaporation, requiring less frequent watering. On the other hand, terra cotta boxes are aesthetically pleasing but heavy when filled with soil, necessitating sufficient support to maintain their weight.
Regular fertilization is essential due to the frequent watering required for window boxes. Begin with a granular slow-release fertilizer at planting time, providing nutrients for a month or more. Follow this with a water-soluble fertilizer in your watering can every week or so as the season progresses.
Designing beautiful window boxes involves selecting flowers and arranging them in a pleasing manner. You can choose to utilize a single type of flower or create a more cohesive look by repeating the same plant a few times. For a lush appearance, opt for plants that spill over the edges. Additionally, remember to include pollinator favorites to attract bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds to your garden.
Below are some of the best heat-loving summer annuals for your window boxes:
Petunia
Touted as a popular choice for summer displays, petunias offer a range of colors, including speckled and striped varieties. They thrive in full sun and well-drained, rich soil with a slightly acidic pH. Choose hybrid types, such as Wave or Supertunia, for continuous blooming without the need for constant deadheading.
Torenia
Known as wishbone flowers, torenias provide pink, white, or purple tubular flowers with yellow throats that attract hummingbirds. The plants are ideal for diffusing heat and growing well in part shade or indirect sunlight, making them suitable for mixed containers.
Ivy Geranium
Common geraniums are a popular container choice, but ivy geraniums offer an attractive ivy-like foliage and vining form. These blooms do best in cooler climates but are suitable as winter annuals in the warmer regions.
Sweet Alyssum
Known for its tiny, honey-scented flowers that attract pollinators, sweet alyssum comes in white, pink, or purple and cascades beautifully from window boxes, lasting well into the fall season under cooler temperatures.
Other excellent heat-tolerant options include coleus, angelonia, pansies, bacopa, sweet potato vine, lobelia, herbs, impatiens, and begonias. Consider incorporating some of these plants in your window box design for a multisensory experience, combining visual appeal with the fragrance of flowers and the freshness of herbs.
- Expand your home's exterior charm with vibrant window box planters, suitable for both homes and apartments.
- In the realm of gardening landscaping ideas, window boxes offer versatility in adjusting the blooms according to seasons, starting with cheery pansies in spring.
- Southern Living magazine, a go-to resource for lifestyle, fashion-and-beauty, food-and-drink, and home-and-garden enthusiasts, features numerous gardening ideas for captivating window box designs.
- Container gardening, particularly window box gardening, requires regular fertilization due to the frequent watering, with a slow-release fertilizer at planting time and weekly water-soluble supplements during the season.
- Traveling through the south during the summer months can offer inspiring window box sightings that blend seamlessly with their home's curb appeal.
- Combine petunias, torenias, ivy geraniums, sweet alyssum, and other heat-tolerant plants in your window box design for a lush, multi-sensory summerdisplay that attracts pollinators and enhances your home's overall appeal.
