Thursday, June 27, 2019

apotspot pots, in my garden

While I was off touring gardens as part of the 2019 Garden Bloggers Fling in Colorado, I got a message from Claire Bandfield of apotspot. She had set aside a few of her hand-cast stone pots if I wanted them (of course!), it turns out she's moving and taking advantage of the opportunity to lighten her load a bit. I beat feet on up to her place in Camas, WA just as soon as I returned. Those two petite pots were part of my haul...

If you read Tuesday's blog post (here) you know the handmade pots we saw during the Fling really made an impression on me, as did the many (many!) sempervivum we saw.

So of course I filled these two pots with a mix of sempervivum.

And a little moss, just because...

I've also resolved to buy at least two 4" pots every time I grocery shop for the rest of the summer (yes, our local Fred Meyer "everything store" chain carries Little Prince of Oregon plants, so there are always nice sempervivum to chose from), this week I got three, since I have some catching up to do. Big patches of houseleeks are in my future!

Since the back garden is full of glazed and colorful containers, as well as lots of metal, the front garden seemed like the best place for these, with their rough stone finish. I think they look right at home cozied up to the vintage pebble and cement pot I inherited from a neighbor.

Oh and speaking of, check out this moth cleverly disguised against the side of the large pot.

Closer...

And from the side. I won't lie, those strange protuberances at the bottom kinda made me feel like Dracula was watching me the entire time I snapped these photos.

Moving to the back patio, I guess was wrong to say all the patio containers are colorful or metal. I do have a collection of concrete and resin pots full of sarracenia and Dionaea muscipula.

These two are new additions from Claire, she made them by putting two glass shades (from light fixtures) together and casting in that shape.

Right after picking up the pots I stopped at Portland Nursery to grab a couple Alternanthera  'Purple Prince' and spotted the small nepenthes. Seemed like a match made in heaven...

Of course I realized after planting them that there maybe some substance in the make-up of the pots that disagrees with these sensitive plants. I guess we'll see...

The smaller of the two containers will stand upright but feels a little iffy, so I placed it on its side.

Although hard to see in this image it's tilted up just enough to keep some moisture in the planting hole. I am curious to see if the pitchers reorient themselves with gravity.

There's another new apotspot container here, on the far right side.

It's very special because Claire named it the Lila pot, yes like our sweet departed dog, Lila.

If I remember right this is the prototype, the first pot made from the mold. I love that it's got a mottled finish, just like Lila's grey/white/black coloring.

I chose to plant this dark Oxalis triangularis in my Lila pot because this plant reminds me of our little girl. I never really appreciated it until I saw it planted all over Austin last May, during the 2018 GB Fling. We said goodbye to Lila right before leaving for Austin so the two are forever intertwined in my memories. My friend Ann recently gave me this plant and by putting it in a pot hopefully I'll be able to over-winter it. We shall see...

One more photo of the whole gang...

And one more pot to share! Although this one is really more of a vase shape.

I haven't tested it to see if it's water-tight, but I suspect it is.

Currently I'm picturing a nice bit of moss, maybe with a couple of tiny saxifrage tucked in the top. I'll have fun deciding exactly what's right for this one, especially since the others came together so quickly...

Weather Diary, June 26: Hi 77, Low 56/ Precip .10"

All material © 2009-2019 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

21 comments:

  1. Wow, these are stunning pots. Exactly what I would get myself.

    Semps are cool, I completely agree. I'm actually trying a few myself, after my previous experiences which ended in death by mealybugs.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I agree, what I would have picked out too. Although she has some amazing troughs too.

      Delete
  2. The tiny Semp planters are so darn cute! They fit in the front garden so well it seems like they've been there all along. As for the concrete collection, I don't remember seeing any of them before... it's a beautiful group of pots and I love the color scheme of steel and chartreuse. The next pot migrations should be fun...

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, I kind of thought so too (like they've been there all along). Most of that concrete collection stays outside, the sarracenia wants the winder chill.

      Delete
  3. I really like all your new pots, but I especially love what you did with those two that are holding Sempervivums. I'm kind of falling in love with Semps all over again after Denver too. Adding the moss makes them look more weathered. I also like the one that's tilted on its side. I hope the pitcher plant does ok, but it's kind of kooky lying on its side, and I have a thing for kooky. It would look good empty too.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There was a little moss on the pots already, but when I planted the pots up you couldn't see it anymore...so I added more!

      Delete
  4. You didn't waste much time in filling those pots! They all, including the still empty one, look great. I'd use a lot more Sempervivum if they did better here - I have some but they look bad most of the year, only perking up during our colder, wetter months. They look fantastic with the Callistemon flowers hanging above them.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ya, it was funny how fast it all happened. It's no wonder you've had trouble with sempervivum, they're not meant for your climate. God gave you aeoniums and other succulents to play with.

      Delete
  5. Great pots. Semps work so well in stone pots and there are so many varieties to suit different plantings. No doubt you will come up with lots of surprising ways to use them.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I already have quite a collection in the ground, I look forward to adding more.

      Delete
  6. Your new pots looks absolutely amazing. And how nice to read about the Lila pot and the Austin inspiration for purple oxalis. I loved those sempervivums in Denver too, but they melt in Austin’s summers, alas.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Ya, my brother took some of his with him from Spokane to Phoenix. They didn't last long.

      Delete
  7. You have a good climate for Semps, so your collection will be impressive. Very grey styling this year--looks good with the chartreus-y green.

    Lila--she was a darling.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Turns out my climate isn't quite as conducive to their forming big patches as Denver's is, but they're still pretty happy here. I've only got one patch that really approaches the magnificence we saw there, otherwise it's just a couple plants here and there...

      Delete
  8. Pots, plants and placement = perfection!

    ReplyDelete
  9. Your grouping of gray pots with limited plant forms is my idea of how to do it right. I love pots but too often they detract from the wider garden. Yours are a perfect complement.

    ReplyDelete
  10. Sempervivums look so established in their pots; I'd never have guessed they were planted so recently. I've already bought a post-fling Sempervivum as well, a random crested mutant, sadly still housed in its original plastic pot.

    ReplyDelete
  11. AnonymousJuly 02, 2019

    top pot !

    ReplyDelete
  12. Oxalis triangularis (purple leaved form and green form ‘Fanny’) has proved hardy for me here in Tacoma for several winters, both in ground and in containers- my only complaint is it is a bit late to come up sometimes.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Guess what I just spotted in a bit of soil in a container that I left untouched from last year. Yep, a purple leaved Oxalis. Finally coming up in July. Ah well, at least it's making an appearance.

      Delete

Thank you for taking the time to comment. Comment moderation is on (because you know: spam), I will approve and post your comment as soon as possible!