Making a Great Winter Container Garden

There are certain times of the year when it becomes a little more difficult to do some traditional gardening, most notably during the winter. When this happens, gardeners are typically left with two choices. Those two choices are to first simply wait to begin doing the gardening when the weather begins to warm up a bit, or to take their garden inside. The best way to take your gardening inside is with what is called a container garden.

Basically, a container garden is another name for a type of terrarium. However, instead of having a completely closed container, like you may with a terrarium, you will be able to open this container. Keep in mind that since this is a winter container garden, that you will want choose items that will work the best during the winter months. While you can choose plants that grow year round and force them to grow out of season inside, it is always best (if not easier) to choose plants that grow best during the colder months. Here's how you can make a great winter container garden.

• Materials. Probably the single most important aspect of creating a successful winter container garden is to choose the correct materials. Due to the nature of these types of gardens, you can expect that there will be some freezing and expanding, so you will want to be sure that you choose materials which will be able to withstand these extreme conditions. Most pots will be able to withstand the cold of winter quite nicely, but be sure that any stone or ceramic pots that you use doesn't have cracks. Over time, these cracks can lead to your pot breaking. Also, ensure that your container will have proper drainage.
• Plants. Choosing a plant for a winter container garden can be a little tricky for many people. The simplest thing to do is to choose plants which seem to not only do well during the winter, but actually seem to thrive. Some of the best plants to use would be an evergreen tree or shrub (such as a cypress, holly, or pine), spring bulbs (such as daffodils or hyacinth) or even some particularly strong vines such as ivy. Do your research before choosing a particular plant though.
• Location. Be sure that you have chosen the proper place to store your winter container garden. In large part this will depend on the type of plant that you are using. If you are simply using some plants that look pretty, but will have little or no chance of survival during the winter, then you will want to keep your container where it will be warm (such as inside, near a window sill). However, if you will be choosing a plant that can survive during the winter months, then you can choose to place it just about anywhere you want. Be sure that you chose a location where it will be protected from the worst that winter can throw at it, but still have plenty of natural light.