My son loves a certain sandwich shop near our home. Although they have lots of condiments to adorn a "sammy", not to mention the bewildering array of breads, my son has a standard order. "Six inch, turkey, white, lettuce, tomato, mayonnaise, chips, tea," he chants when we visit. "Nothing else, thank you, here’s my $5.15."

With sixteen simple words he arranges for a nutritious meal. I, meanwhile, am still scratching my head, trying to decide between cheese foccacia and garlic bread. If I calculate correctly, there are 150 million combinations of six breads, seven meats and ten condiments. Even if I tried a new one for every meal, I’d never test them all. This is fun for me! My son, on the other hand, will have dozens of enjoyable meals in the future simply by repeating his signature sandwich mantra.

DESIGNING
Planning a landscape container for your patio or the entrance to your home is a lot like designing a sandwich. You can stick with the tried-and-true or you can be more adventurous.

A dwarf Boxwood surrounded by Pansies is attractive. But would you have more fun if you replaced the Boxwood with a vertical 'Sky Pencil' Holly or a 'Skyrocket' Juniper? Could Violas be substituted for Pansies?

Containers are fun to design because the elements of color, texture and form are all so close together. Remember that a round or square container usually has a tall plant in the center surrounded by colorful plants of some kind, with vining plants draping below the edges. Window boxes or planter boxes are designed with balance in mind. Maybe you’ll plant one tall, impressive plant in the center surrounded by mounding plants. Or you could have focal-point plants at each end of the box with contrasting colored or textured plants in between.

THEMES
One of the great things about containers is that they can be adapted to fit the moment. I’ve seen containers hung with plastic eggs for Easter and strung with twinkle-lights for Christmas. A Mexican-themed party I once attended featured glowing lizards and chili peppers hanging from a Japanese Maple in a large clay pot. For you Georgia Tech fans who garden, try a small Golden Falsecypress surrounded by black Mondo Grass. Not to be outdone, Bulldog football followers could put a red ‘Firepower’ Nandina in the center of the same black Mondo Grass.

SOIL
In late spring I enjoyed a trip to the Fafard soil manufacturing plant in Orlando. Fafard has a great reputation among garden professionals for the quality and consistency of potting soil. All of the Pike potting and planting soils are manufactured by Fafard, so I am confident they would be a good choice for your containers. While I’m on the subject, don’t forget that larger containers give you more space and planting options. I like those that are at least twenty-four inches wide. Large Italian clay pots and bowls are attractive and weather-resistant.

Big containers don’t need to be heavy. Euracast^TM pots and urns are made from durable, lightweight foam. You’ll be hard-pressed to distinguish them from much heavier concrete or metal containers. They don’t crack and they provide root insulation. Just remember to drill several small holes in the bottom to provide drainage.

MANAGEMENT
Water is potentially the most limiting factor for containers. Large plants in a sunny spot might require watering once a day. If its location is exposed and windy, twice-a-day irrigation could be needed. This is why container size is so important—the soil mass in a big container can hold enough water and insulate the plant roots so the roots are not stressed by fall and winter conditions.

Use your digital water meter (your finger), pushed an inch into the soil to know when it’s time to water. Since plants grow more slowly in cool weather, little fertilizer is needed. I recommend an initial watering with water-soluble plant food followed by an application of a long-acting fertilizer like Osmocote^TM. Mixing and matching is a time-honored tradition in the landscape. Don’t be satisfied with the ordinary when it comes to designing fall containers. By avoiding overused planting schemes, you’ll have an attractive entranceway or patio that makes a "nutritious feast" for visitors’ eyes!

Good Plants for Containers For Vertical Interest

• Aureo-variegata Boxwood
• Gold Sunspray Falsecypress
• Sungold Threadleaf Falsecypress
• Tiny Tower Leyland Cypress
• Little Giant Arborvitae
• Cole’s Prostrate Canadian Hemlock

For Colorful Underplanting

• Silver Mist or Silver Dragon Mondo Grass
• Nigrescens Mondo Grass
• Pansy
• Snapdragon
• Viola

For Vining Habit

• Baltica English Ivy
• Variegated English Ivy
• Vinca or Periwinkle