by Ann C Evans

Created on: August 11, 2009   Last Updated: August 13, 2009

How To Create A Patio Centerpiece.

The middle of a patio can often look quite bare so here is a way of making an all summer display of container plants, to enhance thisarea.

The main plants I use are hostas because they have amazing foliage in a selection of blues, greens and creams as well as variegated. I am not too much bothered by their flowers in this instance. In addition I use the lovely golden 'Creeping Jenny' moneywort as well as some dwarf yellow-apricot tulips (clusiana 'Sheila').

The best time to plant up this centerpiece is late autumn or early spring.

1) First position a large wooden barrel-type tub right in the center of the patio and fill it with good fertilized garden soil, enriched with plenty of organic matter. In this tub I plant a blue-green hosta, 'Fortunei', however this is my own personal choice of hosta; you may want to choose a different variety; but choose one of the larger varieties for the middle of this particular tub.

2) Around the hosta I plant about a dozen and a half dwarf yellow-apricot tulips; this way I can be sure of an early display of flowers and foliage for the spring.

3) I then fill six plastic plant pots of the same size - slightly lower in height than the wooden barrel - with a different variety of hosta in each one. It's incredible just how many different varieties of hostas there are. I then arrange these six plastic pots evenly around the central wooden tub, forming a circle. Already you can see the center piece expanding outwards forming a larger circle. When all the hostas are in full bloom, the leaves are just one majestic cluster of variegated greenery and you can't see any of the actual pots.

4) To enhance and expand the centerpiece even further, I place six smaller pots of 'Creeping Jenny' around the six pots of hostas, positioning them in front of where each of the hosta plant pots meet. The 'Creeping Jenny' is a vigorous ground covering plant and when planted in pots, spills over and hangs to the ground; you can of course use an alternative trailing plant, a dark blue trailing lobelia for example would look stunning. So what you have now created is your own sort of miniature 'Hanging Garden of Babylon', which will see you right through the summer to early autumn.

The bell-like flowers of the hostas are quite pretty in shades of white and more often bluish- pink; however they are very tall and spiky which I think spoils the symmetry of the display, so I cut them off.

When the hostas have eventually died down in early autumn, I just take the six pots of brown dead foliage to the top of the garden and store then behind the garden shed for next year. Likewise with the 'Creeping Jenny' pots. Finally, all you are left with on the patio is just your wooden tub lying dormant until the spring, when the yellow-apricot tulips will once again start peeping through. The new hosta shoots will start making their appearances as the tulips start to wither.

Hostas aren't averse to be grown in pots and they are quite happy with not having to be divided all the time. The only thing that you do have to be careful about is the slugs for they can smell a hosta a mile away. Just deal with any slugs as soon as you spot them, be vigilant. I use a non chemical product that is kind to the environment and doesn't do harm to the wild life. To keep in the moisture, spread a small amount of course grit around the base of the plants.

What I like about this display is that the plants come up year after year, and therefore it's not expensive, there is very labor involved and the results are just so rewarding. You have also created for yourself, an interestingly stunning conversational piece.

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