The Urban Garden, Part 1:

Starting Container Gardens

Gardens don't have to be elaborate flowerbeds or long rolling lawns. An urban garden can bloom anywhere. Tiny apartment patios. Restaurant windows. Front office planters. Like any other garden, all you need to do is understand the environment.

A container garden has three basic concerns:
1. Moisture and evaporation.
2. Temperature around the roots (meaning, inside the pot and soil).
3. Light exposure.

Now, these are the considerations for any garden, but because containers are raised, they're much more susceptible to extreme changes than a traditional planted garden. They heat up, cool down, and lose moisture more rapidly. If the container heats up too much, it can kill the plants from the roots. The soil can lose moisture quicker, yet the pot can also make it easier to over-water plants.

As with everything, you need balance.

When you're planning your container garden, plan for shade. Adequate shade, particularly during the hottest part of the day, will lessen evaporation and reduce how much the container heats up. Porch awnings and window awnings – or other forms of protection, like retractable screens – are crucial for urban environments without tree cover.

The other thing is to plan for light. Many plants – tomatoes, herbs like basil and parsley, and flowers like geraniums – require several hours of sun a day, even if they can be damaged or killed by direct sun in the afternoon. A retractable deck awning or retractable patio cover in strategic locations can be closed to allow healthy sunlight during the morning or early evening, but fully extended to protect plants during the worst of the sun. (A sun sensor is perfect for this kind of setting.)

Add Color and Leave Your Mark....

Printing is like the monogram of retractable awnings and vertical drop awnings. It leaves a personal touch. This is a staple of business awnings, since crisp and vivid lettering on an eye-catching retractable awning or vertical drop awning is an excellent form of outdoor sign. The right printing process, though, offers a lot more than a "just the facts" name-and-number for a business. Printing can open up a whole new variety of styles:

• Details, trim, or patterns
• Full-color photographs and images
• Monograms
• Multi-color logos

The Professional Awnings Manufacturers Association has a good run-down of printing methods, including old favorites like silk-screening and vinyl appliques. When you are looking for graphics on awnings, though, there are three things to look for in the printing method:

• Crispness and image clarity
• Longevity (especially for environment and fabric wear)
• Color and printing versatility

We use only the best method – Sunbrella® Graphics System. This process was jointly developed by Sunbrella® (one of the largest fabric makers in the world) and 3M. The key is that Sunbrella® understands acrylic fabrics better than anyone – so the printing process is uniquely effective for outdoor, acrylic fabrics. SGS uses a combination of heat and vacuum for the ultimate tight-seal, which binds the pigment to the fabric much more effectively than external appliques, silk-screening, or painting. SGS printing lasts longer and looks better.

Treat your retractable awning or vertical drop awning like an artist's canvas. The right printing method is your brush – and you just need to add your personal touch.

Company Bio

RetractableAwnings.com an A+ Better Business Bureau member for 19 years has been assembling and distributing the highest-quality, best-designed European sun, wind, rain, bug and snow protection systems for 25 years. This is our passion – finding unique and lovely solutions to make the outdoors more comfortable and more useful. From private homes to major architectural and landscape design projects, we have the expertise to help. Just ask: 1-866-438-2964 or 305-628-2424.

Retractableawnings.com
Corporate offices and fabrication
5160 NW 165 Street
Miami Gardens, Florida, 33014-6303