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Take your house plants plants outside this summer and use them to create dramatic patio containers. Here, we've teamed purple heart with silvery helichrysum and the trailing silver-grey foliage with the bright-orange flowers of parrot's beak

overwinter in the pot. Cut back the verbascums and the fennel in late winter or early spring (see Adam's tips).AdamDon't be too quick to deadhead the verbascums at the end of the summer, as birds will feast on the seed-heads and the spikes will look dramatic

While many container displays are looking past their best by August, this late-summer display will brighten up a corner of the patio right through autumn. The fiery colours of Crocosmia 'Irish Dawn' and Celosia caracas contrast beautifully

. Let the foliage trail over the sides.Fill any gaps between the plants with more compost, firm down gently and water well.AdamIn really dry weather, wrap hessian around the pot and keep it damp. This will cool down the plants' roots.More containers

of their pots and arrange them in the container. Plant the sedge in the centre, with a blue fescue on either side. Dot the scabious and thrift around the outside.So long as the container doesn't become waterlogged, the plants in this planting scheme should

Don't despair if you only have a tiny garden. Your dream of having a pond is easier to realise than you think. Our mini container pond is big enough to host your favourite aquatic plants and in no time, you'll be able to enjoy watching the wildlife

Large pot Peat-free, multi-purpose compost Put crocks in the base of the container and half fill it with compost. Arrange the osteospermums in the centre of the pot and surround them with the foliage plants. We used Helichrysum petiolare 'Limelight' for its

in this pot as they'll happily mingle with one another. Just make sure the ivory thistle plants aren't too near the edge so they don't prick passers-by.AdamWhen using any metallic container, insulate the plants against extremes of temperature by lining

.AdamTake softwood cuttings of the pelargoniums in spring or late summer for more plants.Alonsoa is a perennial most often grown as an annual. So sow seeds outdoors in late-spring.More advice on summer container displaysPotting up a summer display of scabious

of patrolling and pick them off by handMore on growing climbersHow to grow annual climbers from seedCreate a sweet pea pot displayGrow morning glory in a containerGrow Spanish flag in a potConservatory climber plant collectionEvergreen climber plant collection