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The Gardener’s Guide To Window Boxes

  • Gardener's Guide

Elevate Your Space with Window Box Gardening

When it comes to urban gardening, window boxes offer the perfect solution for adding beauty, greenery, and personality to your home. Whether you’re nestled in a bustling city like Philadelphia or enjoying life in a quiet suburb, these compact gardens make a big visual impact without taking up much space. At Enliven Planters, we believe a window box isn’t just a planter—it’s a canvas for your creativity.


Why Choose Window Boxes?

Window boxes bring the joys of gardening to even the smallest spaces. Beyond their aesthetic appeal, they offer several benefits:

  • Enhance Curb Appeal: A thoughtfully designed window box can transform a plain façade into a welcoming, colorful statement.
  • Boost Your Mood: Studies show that vibrant flowers and lush greenery uplift spirits and reduce stress.
  • Support Local Pollinators: Including pollinator-friendly plants helps sustain bees, butterflies, and other beneficial insects.

Designing Your Dream Window Box

Creating a stunning window box is easier than you might think. Here are some tips to guide your journey:

1. Choose the Right Box

Durability and drainage are essential. Look for window boxes that are designed to withstand the elements while beautifully showcasing your plants. (Not sure where to find the right window box? Check out our window box subscriptions!)

2. Select Plants That Thrive Together

A balanced window box combines thrillers, fillers, and spillers:

  • Thrillers: Eye-catching plants like geraniums or tall grasses add height and drama.
  • Fillers: Bushy plants like petunias or coleus provide bulk and vibrant color.
  • Spillers: Trailing plants like ivy or sweet potato vines cascade gracefully over the edges.

Mix textures, colors, and heights for a visually interesting arrangement. Be sure to consider the sunlight your window box will receive and choose plants accordingly.

3. Invest in Quality Soil

Great soil is the foundation of a thriving garden. Use a high-quality potting mix enriched with compost for optimal plant health.

4. Water Wisely

Window boxes dry out quickly, especially in sunny locations. Self-watering planters or a consistent watering routine can ensure your plants stay hydrated and vibrant.

5. Change with the Seasons

One of the best aspects of window box gardening is its versatility. Update your boxes seasonally to keep them fresh and inspiring:

  • Spring: Tulips, daffodils, and pansies bring vibrant pops of color.
  • Summer: Geraniums, begonias, and lobelia thrive in warm weather.
  • Fall: Ornamental cabbages, mums, and mini pumpkins add festive charm.
  • Winter: Evergreens, holly, and decorative branches maintain interest during the colder months.

Inspiration from Around the World

Cities like London are renowned for their picturesque window boxes adorning historic homes and busy streets. Take inspiration from these classic urban gardens or experiment with bold, modern plant combinations to suit your style. In Philadelphia, rowhouses and apartments provide the perfect backdrop for colorful and creative designs.


Let’s Enliven Your Space

At Enliven Planters, we’re passionate about helping you bring your garden dreams to life. Our curated selection of planters, tools, and accessories ensures you have everything you need to create stunning window boxes. Plus, with our commitment to sustainability, you can feel good about your choices.

Transform your home into a green oasis with window boxes that reflect your style. Whether you’re an experienced gardener or just starting out, Enliven Planters is here to support you every step of the way. Explore our collection today and let’s enliven your space together!

Cultivating Success: The Human Element of Spring Preparation

  • Gardener's Guide
  • What's In Season
Spring Planter Arrangement for Commercial Clients

Team Readiness and Training

While the technical and logistical aspects of preparing for spring planting are crucial, the human element plays an equally important role. As the season approaches, the return of our seasoned gardeners, designers, and nursery team, along with the welcome addition of new faces, brings a renewed energy to our operations.

Each segment of our team undergoes specific preparations to ensure the smooth execution of spring planting. The nursery team focuses on shop layout and plant care refreshers, ensuring that they are ready to receive and care for the incoming plants. Our design team reviews new plant cultivars and updates to design guidelines, ensuring that our creations remain innovative and appealing. Gardeners, the hands-on force behind our operations, refresh their skills with practical exercises and review essential protocols for driving and safety.

The Final Countdown to Planting

As preparations in the shop continue, our gardeners also begin the crucial task of spring cleanouts during March. This involves removing old winter arrangements, refreshing pots with new soil and fertilizer, and ensuring that our installations are primed for the new season. This period also allows for last-minute training and adjustments, ensuring that our team is fully prepared for the intensive planting period ahead.

The preparation for spring planting is a comprehensive process that combines long-term planning, detailed logistical arrangements, and the readiness of our dedicated team. By addressing both the practical and human elements of this preparation, we set the stage for a successful and visually stunning spring season.

This human touch transforms our meticulous planning into vibrant, living landscapes. As the final preparations are made, the excitement within our team is palpable. We’re not just planting flowers; we’re crafting experiences, memories, and the promise of seasonal renewal. It’s this dedication and passion that breathe life into our work, ensuring each project not only blooms but flourishes.

Heading Into Summer

As we close the chapter on preparing for the summer planting season, it’s evident that the lush landscapes and vibrant blooms of the coming season are born from a mix of diligent planning and a keen understanding of nature’s rhythm. This journey from pre-season to planting is a collective effort, involving everyone from nursery staff to gardeners, each playing a crucial role in transforming our shared vision into reality. It’s a meticulous process, from weather monitoring to selecting the perfect plants, all geared towards ensuring that the next season does so spectacularly, turning our spaces into living portraits of color and life. Here’s to the magic that hard work and passion brings, behind the scenes!

The Prelude to Spring Planting

  • Gardener's Guide
  • What's In Season

Preparation

As the anticipation for spring builds with the first unexpected warm day in February, our groundwork for the upcoming planting season is already well underway. This period of preparation is critical, blending meticulous planning with an understanding of the unpredictable nature of weather. Here, we delve into the rigorous process that precedes the bloom of spring, emphasizing the many steps taken to ensure a successful planting season!

When to Plant

The journey towards a vibrant spring landscape for Enliven begins almost a year in advance. This early start is not just about anticipation but a necessity driven by the complex nature of plant cultivation and design. Monitoring weather patterns plays a crucial role in this phase. Weather watching becomes our pastime because, despite the itch to plant the moment the sun peeks out, we’ve learned that patience pays off.

We wait for that golden 10-day forecast in April to really get going, especially around Philadelphia, where winter likes to linger with surprise frosts.

Plant Selection

Long-term planning extends to relationships with suppliers, ensuring access to unique plant varieties and consistent quality. We pre-book custom plants nearly a year in advance! By coordinating with growers from the Pacific Northwest, Canada, and Florida, we can bring in evergreens and ensure that annuals are colorful and ready to bloom upon installation.
Our goal is to deliver plants that are tight and budded, maximizing display time and enjoyment for our clients.

Pre-Season Prep

But it’s not all about the plants. Making sure our gear is in tip-top shape is just as crucial. From tuning up the trucks to sharpening our tools and fixing those pesky irrigation lines, we’re on it – particularly planning for cold snaps. We set up frost protection measures and organize the warehouse to accommodate plants during unexpectedly chilly nights, so your plants aren’t in any danger.

The Team

None of this would work without our fantastic crew. The nursery team focuses on shop layout and plant care refreshers, ensuring that they are ready to receive and care for the incoming plants. The Design team reviews new plant cultivars and updates to design guidelines, ensuring that our creations remain innovative and appealing. Gardeners, the hands-on force behind our operations, refresh their skills with practical exercises and review essential protocols for driving and safety.

The Final Countdown

Gardeners begin the crucial task of spring cleanouts during March. This involves removing old winter arrangements, refreshing pots with new soil and fertilizer, and ensuring that our installations are primed for the new season. We’re all about making sure when the planting season officially hits, we’re more than ready to bring some life and color back into the city and beyond.

​​This journey from pre-season to planting is a collective effort, involving everyone from nursery staff to gardeners, each playing a crucial role in transforming our shared vision into reality. It’s a meticulous process, from weather monitoring to selecting the perfect plants, all geared towards ensuring that when spring arrives, it does so spectacularly.

Schedule

A Free Phone Design Consultation

Please fill out the form below to set up a free design consultation. Consultations are done over the phone and typically last 10-15 minutes. During the call we will discuss your planting needs, gauge your design preferences, and explain how our process works.

Currently Serving the Greater Philadelphia Area