Publications

The Garden
May 2003

Colourful binliners

Gardeners from around the country were given the same project: plant up a dustbin. Andrea Loom compares the final results

Images: Tim Sandall apart from GL Strong, Simon Garbutt (Ian Hodgson's bin), Cleve West and Derek St Romaine

Basic objects, used with flair and ingenuity, can make a valuable contribution to a garden. In this project, gardeners from different areas were encouraged to break the mould and create novel planting schemes in galvanized steel dustbins and incinerators.

The outcomes were amazingly varied and showed what can be achieved by adopting an imaginative approach with an apparently utilitarian object. Some used bright colours to emphasise the bin’s bold, stark outline; others let the planting dominate, softening and partially concealing the container.

Prior to planting a vessel such as a dustbin, drill holes in the base for drainage and place containers in their final position to avoid heavy lifting. To reduce the weight and amount of compost, fill the dustbin between one and two thirds with polystyrene chips or scrunched-up compost bags and add perlite to the compost mixture. Top up with John Innes compost No 2, or No 3 for permanent planting and those vegetables that are greedy feeders. Use soil-less potting compost for annuals and other temporary plantings.

In a sunny position, metal containers can heat up and roots may become scorched, so place in part shade or grow trailing and broad-leaved plants to provide an element of natural shading. Feed plants with a liquid fertiliser in the growing season and water frequently - daily in dry spells.

As the following examples show, there is endless scope for development.

Andrea Loom is a horticultural writer

Nigel Colborn, garden writer and RHS Council member, Lincolnshire

I took advantage of the generous proportions of the dustbin to combine unusual climbing vegetables with floral and foliage displays, resulting in a scheme that was both productive and ornamental. Trailing courgette ‘Tromba d’Albenga’ was trained up a strong wire obelisk placed centrally to provide height, and securely tied in to support the fruits (these can be harvested at an earlier stage than those pictured). The sides of the container were drilled and planted with trailing antirrhinum, polygonum and nasturtium, and wispy Carex flagellifera or C. comans to soften the effect.

As the dustbin lid provides growing conditions appropriate for shallow-rooted or sun-worshipping plants, I decided to try a collection of sedums, including Sedum anglicum, S. caucasicum and S. dasyphyllum subsp. dasyphyllum var. glanduliferum ‘Lilac Mound’.

Dean Peckett, Senior Supervisor, Floral Ornamental Department, RHS Garden Wisley

I chose a summer scheme with a ‘tropical’ feel, emphasised by hot, vibrant flower colours of scarlet Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’, orange Dahlia ‘David Howard’, yellow Rudbeckia fulgida var. sullivantii ‘Goldsturm’ and diminutive, spreading red Cuphea llavea ‘Georgia Scarlet’. Plants with different foliage add a range of textures and shapes, from the dramatic, broad leaves of banana and Canna ‘Verdi’ to trailing, heart-shaped Glechoma hederacea ‘Variegata’ contrasted with spiky red and green leaves of Imperata cylindrica ‘Rubra’ and silvery spirals of Carex comans ‘Frosted Curls’. To add the ambience of holidays and the seaside, scallop shells, driftwood and rope were used as decoration, and metal spiral twists to 1.2m (5ft) were included for height and drama.

I liked the idea of using the galvanised bin, which looked quite industrial, and thought that hot colours would work well with the bright metal finish.

Alongside the bin, I placed the lid at a slight angle to display a collection of alpines planted into an equal mix of John Innes No 2 and sharp grit, to which a small piece of tufa rock provides contrast and height. I used Saxifraga ‘Clarence Elliott’, Pratia angulata ‘Treadwellii’, Arabis procurrens ‘Variegata’, Sempervivum tectorum ‘Sunset’ and Isotoma axillaris ‘Fairy Carpet’, and I finished it off with an attractive mulch of horticultural grit.

Matthew Wilson, Curator, RHS Garden Hyde Hall

My theme was ‘rust’ - as the dustbin never would - and I doubled the contrast by using matt foliage against its shiny finish. Plants were selected for a late-season display of bright foliage, dusky flowers and the autumn fruits of Malus ‘Evereste’, which provided central height. Shrubby Euonymus alatus ‘Compactus’, red-flowered Phymosia umbellata and blue-flowered, red-leaved Ceratostigma abyssinicum were included together with orange-flowered Crocosmia ‘Spitfire’, grasses Andropogon gerardii and Bothriochloa bladhii, and spreading Teucrium hircanicum. Many of these had grey leaves to echo the patina of the bin and integrate the planting with the container. Using fewer plants results in a less-is-more approach and is easier to look after in terms of watering. Finally, the rusty chain and old fence pins seemed rather appropriate to round off the theme.

Andrew Willocks, Supervisor - Plant Propagation, RHS Garden Harlow Carr

Outrageous, clashing - you could say ‘trashy’ - colours were a theme of my planting scheme. I used a galvanised incinerator with preformed holes around the base, through which I grew plants such as Nemesia ‘Sundrops’, N. strumosa ‘Orange Prince’, Nigella damascena ‘Miss Jekyll’, Tropaeolum majus ‘Empress of India’ and blue Petunia ‘Daddy’. To further soften the edges of the planting, Lathyrus odoratus ‘Snoopea’ was added and left to trail - ivy would also be suitable. This interwoven palette of oranges, reds and lilacs created a dramatic understorey.

Adding height were upright young plants of Lonicera nitida ‘Baggesen’s Gold’, together with tall, wiry stems of Verbena bonariensis and blue Agapanthus Headbourne hybrids. These toned down the scarlet flowers of Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ and Dahlia ‘Bishop of Llandaff’.

Chris Bailes, Curator, RHS Garden Rosemoor

For a bold, bright planting to complement the starkness of the bin, I merged foliage of striped Cordyline australis ‘Albertii’, velvety Heuchera micrantha var. diversifolia ‘Palace Purple’, fleshy Aeonium ‘Zwartkop’ and Echeveria secunda var. glauca with flowers of vibrant hues including scarlet and yellow nasturtiums, red Salvia splendens ‘Van-Houttei’, low-growing Lotus berthelotii and orange begonias. The display erupts from the bin and falls back to earth in the manner of a Roman candle, to which the central variegated cabbage palm is key. Architectural succulents and spiky evergreens provide strong foliage and form to balance the functional lines of the dustbin. Plants with clearly defined form are also planted into the side through four drilled holes. Glaucous and grey-leaved plants such as Lampranthus spectabilis ‘Tresco Brilliant’ and Cuphea caeciliae act as a foil to the brighter planting and echo the silver of the bin.

Graham Strong, garden designer and writer

For my planting scheme I wished to create a contemporary, jungle feel, using contrasting leaves rather than flowers, with interest from June to October. Four different leaf shapes are likely to be easier on the eye than a similar number of flower colours all demanding attention. Teucrium scorodonia ‘Crispum’, late-flowering grass Chasmanthium latifolium, flamboyant, late-summer-flowering Canna ‘Striata’ and Darmera peltata, which bears attractive autumn tints, give a long season of interest. The bin looks best against a backdrop of leaves rather than a bare patio. A couple of lanterns suspended from wire crucks pushed into the bin will create an atmospheric effect after dark.

Ian Hodgson, Editor, The Garden

I wanted an exuberant, sun-loving scheme that would provide interest all summer, followed by sumptuous foliage well into autumn. Large specimens of Justicia carnea, bearing dramatic pink flowers, and Fuchsia paniculata were planted to provide immediate structural effect. Perennial shrubs and herbs such as Plectranthus argentatus and Cuphea viscosissima intertwine with long-lasting purple and maroon annuals including Atriplex hortensis var. purpurea, A. hortensis ‘Colour Fountains’, Cosmos bipinnatus ‘Daydream’ and Salpiglossis sinuata ‘Chocolate Royale’. Cascades of Rhodochiton atrosanguineus clothe the front of bin. The result is a dark, sultry, subtropical feel, calmed with pink.

Cleve West, garden designer and writer

The project coincided with the acquisition of my fourth allotment plot, on which were some rusty poles and wire that I recycled to make a 2.4m (8ft) frame, christened the Angel of the South. I used this as a support for climbing vegetables including squash ‘Hubbard Blue’ and Momordica charantia (karela). Growing in a dustbin helps avoid slug damage, but on the downside requires considerable care and attention, including regular watering, feeding and tying in to clothe the support. I wanted the plants to smother it completely to accentuate the figurative form, but this took a while and wasn’t as full as I’d hoped. Eventually it took on a sort of scarecrow appearance, albeit skeletal.

Derek St Romaine, gardener and photographer

Taking advantage of the large size and hot conditions of the container I grew a combination of herbs and vegetables, as much for their colour as their productive value: parsley, thyme, sorrel, Mentha x piperita f. citrata ‘Chocolate’, variegated Origanum vulgare ‘Country Cream’, lemongrass, nasturtiums, celery and tomatoes. I used a metal incinerator with holes in the side, and though these were a little small, I overcame this by wrapping each plant in a roll of newspaper and carefully threading them through from the inside. They soon settled down and required little maintenance except regular watering. In late October I replanted the herbs into individual containers.

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