With little soil or space, selecting the right plants and containers can result in a beautiful, functional patio, deck, balcony, walkway or doorstep. Containers provide you more control over soil, watering, sun and shade; allowing you to make your statement in the garden. Container gardening is also mobile gardening, with the flexibility to start small in building your Garden of Eden and quickly change your focal points with the seasons, new found plant treasures or your mood.

While the possibilities for container gardening are endless, consider the following -

* Don't limit yourself to annuals. Perennials can be mixed with bulbs and annuals for a long-blooming interesting display.

* Water containers until it runs out the drainage holes, wait five minutes and do it again. Large containers can regularly require a gallon of water.

* Prune any scraggly stem and deadhead flowers.

* Check the flower guides for sunlight requirements for each plant.

* Spin containers every couple of days to provide even sunlight.

You can grow almost anything in a container garden with virtually no limit to the type of container you can use. Even if anything that holds soil, is a container, make sure every container has sufficient drainage. If there is any question about adequate container drainage, drill or punch additional holes. Roots rot in water-logged soil.

*Put a regular pot inside a decorative container, if you do not want holes in your planter. This can benefit some heavy drinking plants, but they should not sit in water for an extended period.

* Setting the container on a solid surface or floor reduces drainage. Slightly raise the container off the floor with bricks or wood blocks.

* Cheap plastic pots may deteriorate in direct sunlight and terra cotta pots dry out rapidly. Glazed ceramic pots, though excellent containers, may require drainage holes.

* Redwood and cedar are best, but all wooden containers eventually rot. Don't use any wood that has been treated with Penta or Creosote.

* Small pots restrict the root area and dry out very quickly. The size and desired number of plants to be grown should determine the size of the container used.

* Gravel or newspaper in the bottom of the pot helps to prevent soil loss.

* Use light-colored containers to decrease heat absorption and discourage uneven root growth and keep baskets out of the afternoon sun.

* Closely monitor porous clay pots, smaller containers, sun or wind exposed plants for moisture loss.

Container soil
Roots require both air and water with their fertilizer. Container soil must be porous enough to drain rapidly, yet retain moisture. Soil or dirt is typically too heavy and holds too much moisture. Most lightweight packaged potting mixes from the garden center will do, but if your garden will be of any size, we recommend your own mix: one part peat moss, one part garden loam or sandy soil (or potting mixture), and one part coarse sand. Compost or composted bark are always good additives. Depending on the plants, lime may be needed. Commercial potting mixes sometimes have a high percentage of slightly acidic composted bark. This is also a good time to add your slow-release fertilizer to the mix. Leave room at the top of the container for water and maybe mulch.

Fertilizer
Depending on the plant requirements, top performance may require a variety of elements and watering washes out nutrients. We recommend slow release fertilizers and frequent watering with diluted liquid fertilizer, if you want to be the envy of friends and neighbors. Occasional application of liquid fish emulsion, liquid seaweed or compost will add trace elements. Do not overdose with any fertilizer, excess fertilizer can burn and kill your plants.

Here are a couple of final thoughts for container planting:

*Planting in containers can be a temporary plan to develop root systems, or can help determine whether you like its attributes well enough to place the plant permanently in your garden.

*Planted in a containers, perennial plants (and their offspring) will eventually become rootbound, requiring them to be stepped up to larger pots or be divided.

*Most any perennial can be grown in a container. As a general rule of thumb the minimum container size should be 1 gallon capacity for each foot of potential growth, i.e. 1 foot = 1 gallon, 3 feet = 3 gallons.