The porch was okay, but it wasn’t really a destination—unless you were tired and needed a rocking chair. And it had potential—in fact, it had a few feet of empty space just begging to cradle window boxes. But, in keeping with the restive ambiance of the rockers, I wanted a conversation piece that wouldn’t jar the senses. And, the back of my house seriously needed something to add a little botanical “bowtie” for the porch. When Longfield came out with their collection of calla lilies, they were just the ticket.
THE CHALLENGE:I needed filler for a pair of window boxes that would spark conversation for anyone who might settle into the rocking chairs, but I needed low maintenance. After all, who wants to be a slave to their porch display? Plus, the porch wasn’t within the range of a hose. I wanted something tall enough frame the garden beyond, but not so tall that it blocked the view from my office windows. For the backyard, anything would do. THE SOLUTION:
With my white cottage as the background looking in from the street, and the flamboyant garden as the background looking out from the office windows, I decided that a black calla was the perfect color. It wouldn’t compete with the garden, but it would look sharp against the faux-cement fiberglass containers. In addition, I had an antique wooden captain’s chest that I use as a window box behind my converted barn—lavender callas would put a smile on that space. THE CAST OF CHARACTERS:
The calla lilies were really the star attractions, their companion fillers were just understudies. I had never seen anything like the black ‘Night Cap’ calla lilies before. So I decided to play their container against the white ‘Crystal Clear’. Initially, sweet potato vines were planted to drape down the sides of the faux-cement containers, but they became bug-riddled and their leaves were pocked with holes. So I switched mid-season to Plectranthus forsteri ‘Green on Green’ (alias Plectranthus forsteri ‘Aureus Variegatus’) and it was a stunner. For the captain’s chest, I combined Calla lily ‘Lavender Gem’ with Salvia argentea ‘Hobbit’s Foot’. THE PAY OFF:
Midsummer is when the garden slows down, but that was just when the calla lily containers revved up. With the help of their container companions, they looked great from early summer onward. And by late summer, they were going strong. The result was definitely a two thumbs up. Would I do it again? You betcha.