That apple did not fall too far from the tree

Belladonna decided to stay in the Grand Rapids area over the summer.  That bums me out because I really enjoy her company.

Then she said that she missed the green and growing.  She asked if I thought it was possible for her to have a few plants on her front porch.

We made a quick trip to Hastay's Greenhouse.  Belladonna consulted with Roger Hastay and followed his advice.  He suggesed species.  She picked colors.

Holes were drilled in the bottoms of the pots for drainage.  A couple of inches of limestone chips were added for ballast and drainage.

Based on Belladonna's description of the amount of sunlight she expected, Roger steered her away from geraniums and toward Sunpatiens.  With a maximum height of 24" they will not overpower the pot.  Bella does not anticipate any problems chopping back the basil to keep the pot visually balanced.

Noting the aqua tones of the pots Belladonna had chosen, Roger suggested that Sweet Alyssum would almost look like foam on a cresting wave as it spilled out of the pot...and add a nice fragrance to the mix.  This is the pot that received the Golden Lemon Thyme.  It is in the ten-o'clock position.

And then Bella did something that filled me with joy:  She tucked something edible into each pot.  One pot received Golden Lemon Thyme. which is virtually indistinguishable from the Sweet Alyssum.  The other pot received Genovese Basil.

These will be spectacular after they size up a bit.  She knows to turn them a quarter turn each day so they don't get lopsided.