Building A Hot Box For Gardening

Colorful Window Box Garden

Follow this formula for a lush window box garden. Shades of pink and purple harmonize beautifully to create a stunning container.

Create a beautiful view just outside your window that will last all summer. In this window box design, spreading petunias, licorice plant, verbena, and sweet potato vine come together to make a lush display. Trailing plants add extra fullness and interest to this sunny window box.

Pink flowers container garden with letters

Richard Felber

| Credit: Richard Felber

C:Petunia 'Carpet Lilac' — 2

D:Verbena 'Aztec Pink Magic' — 1

F:Salvia 'Lady in Red' — 1

G:Petunia 'Ramblin White' — 1

H:Petunia 'Pink Daddy' — 1

Sweet Potato Vine Ipomoea Batatas 'Blackie'

William N. Hopkins

| Credit: William N. Hopkins

A: 'Blackie' Sweet Potato Vine

Ipomoea batatas 'Blackie' offers purple hand-shape foliage on a vigorous plant. Typically used as spillers in containers, they also make fantastic groundcovers, typically spreading 4 to 6 feet. In this window box, this variety of sweet potato vine adds depth to the trailing display with very dark foliage.

Helichrysum 'Silver Mist'

Marty Baldwin

| Credit: Marty Baldwin

B: Licorice Plant

Licorice plant comes in a variety of subtle colors that work well with many color palettes. Most commonly, these plants are silver or white; although there are several variations of soft greens, golds, and variegated foliage. The plant used in this display adds softness and lighter foliage to the mix.

Pink Petunias blooming in garden

Laurie Black

| Credit: Laurie Black

C: 'Carpet Lilac' Petunia

One of the most popular annuals, petunias add mountains of color to gardens and containers. These tough plants are capable of putting on loads of blooms all season long and come in a wide variety of colors and patterns to suit any need. The two 'Carpet Lilac' plants on either end of the window box add an electric lilac hue.

Pink Magic Verbena

Andy Lyons

| Credit: Andy Lyons

D: 'Aztec Pink Magic' Verbena

Verbena is the ideal plant to cascade over retaining walls, containers, baskets, and window boxes. These plans do well in full sun and can trail up to three feet. The rosy-pink blooms on the 'Aztec Pink Magic' plant go well with the pale purple and pink scheme of the arrangement.

Torenia 'Summer Wave Blue' and 'Summer Wave Large Violet'

Peter Krumhardt

| Credit: Peter Krumhardt

E: 'Summer Blue Wave' Wishbone Flower

This short plant features delicate blooms and comes in many color variations. Wishbone flowers do well in containers and add great color and density. 'Summer Blue Wave' has indigo patches in both light and dark shades and features a dark center.

Lady-In-Red Salvia

Peter Krumhardt

| Credit: Peter Krumhardt

F: 'Lady In Red' Salvia

Salvia coccinea 'Lady in Red' is an award-winning, long-blooming variety. This salvia is a heat- and drought-resistant selection with bright red flowers. It can grow up to two feet tall, so it adds great height to this window box.

White Petunia bloom

Gordon Beall

| Credit: Gordon Beall

G: 'Ramblin White' Petunia

Petunias are tough plants and capable of putting on loads of blooms all season long. They also come in a wide variety of colors and patterns to suit any need. 'Ramblin White' has large white blooms that cover the entire mounding plant. The plentiful flowers work well in this arrangement to break up the lush green foliage of all the plants included.

Green planter with Pink Petunias

Kindra Clineff

| Credit: Kindra Clineff

H: 'Pink Daddy' Petunia

The large light pink blooms of 'Pink Daddy' petunias feature a hot pink veining pattern. Like many petunia varieties, the stems and foliage are bright spring green. The full plant in this arrangement trails for added interest.