Prairie Morning Container Garden

Like a small world of sun-splashed grassland, our Prairie Morning Container Garden invites the play of light breezes as well as visions of escape and relaxation. Two compact plants of Rudbeckia MiniBeckia™ Flame (usually treated as annuals, although some may overwinter) make a strong focal point with 4"-wide, golden yellow, gorgeously red-eyed blossoms that keep coming until a hard frost. Cut-leaved Sweet Potato Vines (Spotlight™ Black) mound at their feet, while a compact Ornamental Millet ‘Jade Princess’ (Cenchrus americanus, formerly Pennisetum glaucum), featuring a fountain of unusual lime-green foliage, sends up deep brown, pollenless flower spikes that beautifully echo the dark centers of the Rudbeckias. A grasslike Hair Sedge (Carex testacea) adds rich olive and coppery tones to the mix. The simple, natural look of this collection brings the beauty of the prairie and open sky to any sunny patio, balcony, or outdoor space. 6 plants total, quantities listed below. Container not included.

• 2 Sweet Potato Vine Ipomoea batatas Spotlight™ Black (PP 28,555)
• 2 Rudbeckia MiniBeckia™ Flame
• 1 Ornamental Grass: Cenchrus americanus 'Jade Princess'
• 1 Sedge: Carex testacea

Some plants require more space in container gardens than others. To accommodate the 6 plants in this collection, we recommend a container at least 16" in diameter, and at least 12" deep.

We want our customers to receive strong, healthy plants that are ready to thrive in their gardens and homes. Here's what we'd like you to know about our shipping practices.

Delivery Timing

We aim to deliver your plants at as close to the proper time for planting in your area as possible. To do so, we consider the USDA Hardiness Zone to which we're shipping, current and forecasted weather at the destination and along the shipping route, and whether your plants are ready for transplant.

In spring, we ship first to the warmest regions and move north as planting conditions improve. For fall deliveries, we begin with the coolest regions and work south. We frequently adjust shipping schedules when extreme weather could put plants at risk while in transit or soon after arrival.

Because different plants reach readiness at different rates and are weather-sensitive in varying degree, a single order may be delivered via multiple shipments. Plants sold as part of a collection, or that are otherwise meant to arrive together, will be shipped together. Please contact our customer service team with two weeks' advance notice if you anticipate being away at the expected time of delivery. 

Tracking information for each package is delivered via email. 

Plant & Container Sizes

We deliver plants in various sizes and stages of growth, and the product detail pages of our website indicate the form and/or pot size in which the plant will be delivered. Pot sizes range from 1 pint to 1 gallon and larger. Many perennials, roses, shrubs and vines are delivered bareroot - that is, not in a container at all. Bulbs and tubers are generally delivered bareroot and fully dormant. We choose container sizes and delivery methods based on how each plant grows best, how we can minimize transplant shock, and how to minimize unnecessary bulk/weight in shipment. 

Caring for Your Plants Upon Arrival

It is important to acclimate greenhouse-grown plants to life outdoors. All plant shipments include simple instructions for handling your plants upon arrival. Further how-to information, including planting instructions, is available on each plant's product page.

Choosing a pot and growing mix: In addition to our Annual Collections, most of the plants we offer can be grown, either singly or in combination, in containers. Any container with a drainage hole in the bottom will suit. The growing medium in containers must drain much more quickly than garden soil. Many gardeners purchase special potting mixes, which we offer and are available at most garden supply stores. These mixes are specially designed for container gardening and help ensure growing success. If you happen to have your own compost pile (or other composting system), it’s always helpful to add rich compost to any potting mix. If you don’t currently have a compost pile, consider creating one so you have ready access to compost for all your planting needs.

Planting: Begin by adding potting mix to the container until the container is about ¾ full. (If you use a dry, peat-moss-based mix, you must first moisten it by placing it in a plastic tub or a wheelbarrow and slowly adding water until the mix is moist but not soggy.) Next, set the plants on the mix one by one, spacing them much more closely than you would when planting them in the ground. Put the tallest plants in the center of the container. Surround them with the shorter, mounding plants, and put trailing plants along the edge. When you are pleased with your arrangement, add potting mix to bring the level to within an inch or so of the container's rim and firm lightly. Finally, water thoroughly.

Container care: Plants in containers need special care. They dry out more quickly than plants in the ground and smaller pot sizes may dry out faster due to less soil volume. In the heat of summer, we recommend thorough watering and protection from too much afternoon sun. You may have to water plants daily, or even twice daily. Because of the need for frequent watering, nutrients soon wash out the bottom of the pot. To keep annuals growing and flowering, we suggest you water with a balanced, water-soluble fertilizer mixed as directed, every other week in summer. (Other plants—bulbs, perennials, and shrubs—need less fertilizer; a half-strength solution applied once a month through August is enough.) Our Vermont Compost Plus is a mix of 10 ingredients, organic and mineral, that will revitalize last year's potting soil and slowly release nutrients throughout the season. All-Bloom Fertilizer is a 15-30-15 product that can be diluted in water and applied regularly during the growing season. Finally, to look their best, all plants in containers need regular grooming. Remove spent flowers regularly and pinch back any vigorous growers that become too large for their container.

Preparing for winter: In climates where winter temperatures drop well below freezing, containers should generally be dismantled in fall. Bring tender plants indoors or toss them on the compost heap; plant hardy bulbs, perennials, and shrubs in the ground. Most containers should be emptied of potting mix and stored under cover; only plastic and fiberglass pots can be left out over winter without cracking. In mild-winter climates—say, Zone 8 (10°F) and warmer—hardy plants can generally be left outdoors in containers with little risk either to the plants or to the pots.

At White Flower Farm, we stand firmly behind every product we sell and are proud to offer a money-back guarantee on each and every item offered on our website and at our store in Connecticut. Some modest terms and conditions apply, click here for details.

Should you have any questions about how our guarantee applies to a particular product or circumstance, our customer service team will be happy to help – please contact us at (800) 411-6159 or [email protected].