wrote in message
...
I'm a man and a bachelor... so not a lot of knowledge
of plants and gardening

I have a small patio id like to 'class up" a bit by
using pots and plants

Question...many types of post to chose from. What is
best type and material for low maint pots and plants?

I'm thinking HARD plastic over the softer foam pots,
right?

I would also move these pots INSIDE my house in winter
and grow low care plants in winter as well. Peace
Lily's?

Anyway....advice on pots please?


Pot rules:

1) Big pots dry out faster than small pots. A 12" high pot will dry out
completely in the sun in about 4 hours. Know thyself. If you're gone at work
for 8 hours a day, many of your plants will suffer in small pots, so buy the
biggest you can manage. Up to your knees is about right, and keep them
watered.

2) Most plants want their roots cooler than their tops. Even if the pots did
NOT dry out, they still get quite warm. So, again, bigger is better, and
light colors are better than dark colors. Try and group the pots to shade
some of them, even if it means sticking a patio chair in front of the pots
on the warmest days.

3) Red clay pots look great, but they're porous, so they dry out more
quickly than materials like plastic. It's not always easy to find plastic
pots that don't look tacky. One nice alternative is the half barrels sold at
garden centers. They're big & unmanageable, and you wouldn't want them in
the house. Buy smaller pots to use only in the house.

4) Styrofoam: You're right. Forget it. Besides looking lousy, they get
damaged by garden tools.