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    Home » Misc. » DIY & Hints » Spring

    Hardy Spring Planter - tough enough for a light frost.

    Published: Apr 24, 2019 · Modified: Apr 3, 2021 by Susan Moncrieff · This post may contain affiliate links · 1 Comment

    What is a hardy spring planter?

    A hardy spring planter is one that you can plant and not worry about a cold spring night harming the plants. I'm in Wisconsin, and it's about 3 to 4 weeks before it's safe to start planting plants that the frost won't kill/harm.

    cute light purple pansies

    How to know if plants are hardy enough for a spring planter?

    Knowing if plants are hardy enough for a spring planter often comes from experience with planters.  Or, if you ask someone from a nursery or garden center, you can ask them.  Just make sure the person you ask knows something about plants.  I chose plants that are the first in the nurseries or garden centers AND I also like the plants that are the last to survive in the late fall.

    My window box planter, that is actually my deck planter, is what I see anytime I come or go from my home. It's what my close neighbors also see : ). They probably don't realize it, but this is the planter I plant, then step over into their yard to see if it looks good from there.  They are awesome neighbors so I want to keep them happy!

    window box planter attached to my deck rail

    What is in your hardy spring planter?

    For the early spring planter, I chose pansies as the main plant. I just have always loved them! They have those saucy looking faces. They are super hardy and even if it snows on them, they will be fine. Here is what happened last week to some little pansies (also called violas) I eventually put into a different planter.

    pansies covered with snow

    Some planting tips!

    Your plants may be a little root bound when you are transplanting them. This is something you can easily rectify. Here is a root bound plant.
    a close up view of a root bound root ball

    I often just pinch off the roots from the bottom, rough up the sides a bit and spread the roots at the bottom.
    the

    The small plants in the little multi containers have the same issues.
    Root bound plant:
    small allysum plant that is root bound.

    Roughed up with the bottom pinched off:
    close up of rootball roughed up.

    The above is alyssum which has pretty tiny flowers.  What I love about this plant is they start to cascade and just keep blooming.

    a planter with colorful plants
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    **This post may contain affiliate links. Please see my full disclosure policy for details.**

    the planted spring planter with pansies, dusty miller and allysum.

    This planter will fill in beautifully in the next week or two.  The alyssum just grows and blooms.  I also included dusty  miller which will grow and fill in this planter.  Dusty miller is one of the toughest plants when it comes to frost.

    dusty miller in the window box

    So, here's my plan with this planter.  The dusty miller and the alyssum will grow and fill in.   By about the third week of May, the danger of frost is over where I live.  The pansies will be replaced with geraniums.  I actually do let the pansies stay in the container, but they tend to die back a bit in the hot weather.  But, they often reappear in the cooler fall weather.

    I'll make a point of updating this post with how this planter is doing.

    If like me, you just can't wait to start planting, go ahead.  Just use plants that are hardy and can survive what spring weather might bring.  As a review, I used pansies (3), alyssum(4) and dusty miller(3).

    I do have to share that if you plan on doing a lot of gardening, treat yourself to some pretty garden gloves.  Good gardening gloves aren't very expensive but you'll really appreciate them when you do a lot of gardening in a day.

    If you are on Pinterest, make sure you pin the picture below to your Pinterest account!

    the hardy spring planter with purple pansies

     

     

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    1. Patti

      April 25, 2019 at 5:33 am

      My mother was a big fan of dusty miller so they always remind me of her, and I love pansies and alyssum. What a great idea for those of us who can't wait to get out and garden but still have the threat of a frost.

      Reply

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    I'm Susan Moncrieff! I love sharing easy recipes, especially those that take less than 30 minutes and have less than 5 ingredients. I'm passionate about gardening and creating flower planters. My home is 100 years old and sometimes you will see it in my posts! It was a true fixer upper and I love it!

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