On today's 5 Minute Friday, we're planting up a container with Echinacea and Heuchera. These two plants complement each other beautifully, with the lemony yellow leaves of the Heuchera setting off the stunning amber reds of the Echinacea. The great thing about this video is that the tips can be used to plant all sorts of different plants, so let your imagination run wild and have fun.
Echinacea Red Rocket is a fairly new variety that doesn't disappoint. Often known as coneflowers, these long-flowering and much-loved plants produce vibrant daisy-like flowers from early summer all the way into autumn. Red Rocket itself is one of our plants of 2024. The striking amber-red petals of the blooms stand out across the nursery and in a garden too. In fact, if you take a look at the back of the video, you'll see a group of them happily flowering away. Growing to 50cm and spreading 45cm, it is one of the shorter Echinacea, making it ideal for containers or the front/middle of a border. This is a centrepiece plant that truly delivers.
I've chosen to surround Red Rocket in this container with Heuchera Citronella. The lemony yellows of the leaves make the Echinacea stand out even more. Heuchera is a fantastic choice for containers; they love growing in pots and make an attractive backdrop for other plants. This particular Heuchera is a gem of a plant that emerges lime green in the spring, but as the season progresses into summer and autumn, the foliage turns a lovely bright yellow.
If you love the Echinacea Red Rocket (who wouldn't?) then you can get your hands on one here>>
This is a winning combination that will work in a container, as I've done here, or planted together in a border.
If you want to plant this container, follow the video or the steps below.
- Find a suitable container. If you are planting this particular mixture, a container that is around 30-40 cm in diameter at the top would be ideal.
- Use a good multi-purpose compost. Fill the container to about one pot depth from the top (in this case 9 cm from the top). This is because we will plant the Echinacea first. If you watch the video, the Echinacea is in a pot, whereas the Heuchera are starter plants. We will plant the Echinacea in the center of the pot.
- We want the Echinacea to sit in the container at the same depth it is in the existing pot. To top plant the Echinacea, gently squeeze the pot to release the root ball and remove the pot. The Echinacea can now be placed in the centre of the pot on the surface of the compost. Do not push it down, just place it on the surface.
- Now top up the compost around the Echinacea, leaving the compost just below the top.
- To plant the Heuchera, we will now make three holes in the compost around the Echinacea. From the top, the Heuchera should look like they are planted in a triangle.
- When planting the Heuchera, do not push them down too hard. Instead, place them in the holes you have made and tuck them in.
- Now all that is left to do is water the container well. These plants are very hardy, so the container can go straight outside without any issues.
I hope this helps! Let me know if you have any other questions.
