Skalniak in a pot on the balconyis an excellent proposition for all lovers of rock plants who do not have their own garden at their disposal. As it turns out, you don't need a lot of space to create a small rock garden, even on the balcony. Seehow to make a rockery in a pot on the balcony , how to choose the rightplants for a rockery in a potandhow to maintain a rockery on the balcony that he will delight with his beauty for a long time!
Skalniak in a pot on the balcony. In the photo: a wall swarm, prickly pear, mountain swarmer
How to make a rockery in a pot on the balcony?
A small rockery on the balconycan be created in wooden, plastic or ceramic pots. With a little imagination, you can connect pieces of branches, tree roots, gravel or decorative grit and create interesting compositions from these materials.
The rockery pot on the balconyshould be at least 30 cm deep. This is necessary to achieve good conditions for the development of rock roots. Shallow pots will only be good for drought-resistant plants, e.g. swarms, which blend in nicely in a low pot.
The depth of the container for rockeryalso determines the thickness of the drainage layer. Drainage should fill from 25-40% of the total height of the container. For this purpose, you can use, for example, expanded clay or crushed fragments of old ceramic pots.
The rockery pot on the balconyshould have at least one or preferably several drainage holes. This condition applies to all containers intended for the rock garden. A 60 cm long channel should have at least 3 to 5 holes, 1-2 cm in diameter.
Skalniak in a pot on the balcony. In the photo: sea phlox, scale juniper, wall swarm, Kamchatka sedum Variegatum, stonecrop
If you intend togrow in a rockery on the balconylow shrubs, perennials or bulbs sensitive to frost, it is worth covering the inner walls of the pot with polystyrene before laying the drainage layer. Perennial plants planted in such a prepared pot for rockery will survive the winter period unscathed and will decorate our balcony for many years.
The choice ofsubstrate for the balcony rockerydepends mainly on the requirements of the plants. However, it is important that the substrate is loose and well-drained. Most popular rock gardens will grow well in neutral or slightly alkaline soil. For acidophilic plants, choose an appropriately acidified substrate.
It is worth sprinkling grit on top of the pot, which will reduce the growth of weeds and keep the root neck dry, which is sensitive to rot in many rock plants.
Skalniak in a pot on the balcony. In the photo: saxifrage, variegated rye grass Variegatum, stonecrop Variegatum
How to maintain a rockery in a pot on the balcony?
After planting the plants in a rockery in a pot on the balcony , they should be watered abundantly. The potted rock garden requires inspection, because in the hot booth in the southern exhibition, the water from the containers evaporates faster. Careful observation will help determine the watering rhythm. Overflow should be avoided, as many rock plants do not tolerate excess moisture in the substrate.It is worth thinking about stabilizing the soil moisture at the stage of planting. Well, when planting, it is worth mixing the soil in the pot with TerraCott. This product contains a starting dose of fertilizer, fragments of volcanic rock that loosens the soil (especially important for rock plants) and a hydrogel that stores water in the ground. Thanks to the hydrogel, the soil remains moist for much longer.Plants can be watered less frequently, while saving up to half of the water used for watering!
Above all, however, by adding TerraCottem to the soil, we create better growth conditions for our plants in pots on the balcony.
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MSc Eng. Joanna Białowąs
