Kitschy garden ornaments have never had much appeal for me, so I was pleasantly surprised last month at the good looks of a small, antique iron cart filled with trailing asparagus ferns and yellow chrysanthemums. It sat on an entry porch exuding a quiet cachet at a clubhouse in Santa Rosa, as it welcomed members and guests.
It may have been the woodsy setting or the proximity to Thanksgiving that set the tone, yet it was enough for me to pick up two autumn ferns (Dryopteris erythrosora) and a yellow mum on my way home and picture them sitting in an oblong bronze planter on my own doorstep.
This simple combination tolerates rain and cool weather and seemed just the right accent and informal welcome at our home.
Today, the mums are gone and a festive poinsettia has taken their place.
The initial planting wasn't actually a planting at all, merely pots set inside a 10-by-24-inch decorative planter of open metal work. Now the grouping rests in potting mix held in place by a coir insert the same dimensions as the container.
The poinsettia sits snugly in the center, still in its pot. In a week or so, it will come out and pansies (Viola) or primroses (Primula) will take its place, this time transplanted directly into the potting soil. These should be content to bloom and re-bloom alongside their ferny companions until summer.
Beyond holidays
Dressing up entryways for holidays seems easy enough because we rely on traditional symbols, but it's even easier to create long-term d?or with plants. Unless the front yard is landscaped up to the doorstep, an entry area remains fairly austere. Whether filled with evergreens or seasonal colors, containers can banish the bleakness of an empty concrete stoop or faceless flight of steps.
A vibrant, living focal point creates a welcoming impression, always at its peak if you're willing to treat it as a small, working garden.
For the most part, that means changing out all or some of the plants each season, deadheading repeat blooms on flowering species, and watering and fertilizing regularly.
Among the easiest plants to maintain, tidy evergreen trees, shrubs, or perennials in large pots need little more than periodic grooming and regular water and fertilizer. But for some homes, these exude an out-of-place formality.
Splashes of color from annuals or perennials are more informal and often more appealing, yet also more demanding of time and attention.
What's your style?
Before selecting a design for a container or a plant species, take a cue from the style of your home. Stout columns, tile, and stone on a custom home form a completely different backdrop than wood siding or shingles on a bungalow or cottage.
A matching pair of classic urns or painted French boxes will hold a formal arrangement, whereas terra cotta and redwood suit more casual combinations. Glazed pots color-matched or coordinated to a home's trim are appropriate in any site.
More important than the appearance of the container itself is its size. The planting it holds should be in proportion not only to the pot but also to the site.
The finished arrangement in one container or in a group of pots should reach at least one-third the height of a doorway. Anything lower looks unbalanced and skimpy. Conversely, unless the entry is spacious, very tall plantings may crowd the area and feel awkward.
Cultural concerns
Take into account the amount of sun or shade that covers your doorstep prior to selecting plants. And make a firm decision on the amount of time you want to spend in maintaining a handsome arrangement.
Unless you're prepared to check the soil moisture every day in a sunny site or every few days in shade, install an automatic watering system. This will leave you with only weekly — or monthly in the case of many evergreens — check-ups, fertilizing and grooming chores.
To maintain your arrangement in top form, consider developing two container plantings, one to sit front and center, and a second held in reserve.
When plants take on a tired look, swap out the first pot and replace it with the second that you've been nurturing to take its place.
(Rosemary McCreary, a Sonoma County gardener, gardening teacher and author, writes the monthly Homegrown column for The Press Democrat. Write to her at P.O. Box 910, Santa Rosa, 95402; or send fax to 664-9476.)
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