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The Impatient Gardener

Containers, Garden

WINDOW BOX INSPIRATION IN ALL SHAPES AND SIZES

August 4, 2017

I think window boxes are some of the most fun but most challenging containers to get right. Depending on their placement they may need to drape, may have restrictions as to how high they can be (so as to not block a window) and are often narrow, leaving not a lot of soil for plants to grow in. But done right, they become an architectural asset. 
I like to study window box design because I’m always looking to do it better. And Mackinac Island (which I visited a few weeks ago, as I do every year), is full of window box inspiration.
This is actually several window boxes butted up together and mounted a little below eye level. The gap between boxes is bridged by the Thunbergia on a simple stick trellis. 
Brightly colored window box
Planting a window box in sun leaves oodles of options for plant combinations. But shade window boxes can be a challenge. Here’s a charming shade box, mounted under a window outside a shop at about hip height. This might be my favorite window box of all of these. Don’t you love how the lilac color of the box is reflected in the heuchera in the box?
Shade window box
All of the window boxes at the Iroquois Hotel, all planted by Jack Barnwell’s amazing crew, were red, white and blue this year. I like how the white flowers reflect the color of the boxes and the building (hmm … I’m sensing a theme here). 
Red, white and blue window box
This is a huge “window box” at the back of the giant spa on the lake side of the Chippewa Hotel. I love the papyrus grasses, but I’d like to see a little more drape. That may be coming when the sweet potato vine and the petunias get a little more mature.

Poolside window box

This is more of a railing box, but it’s the same concept. I quite like this design as well, but again, I’d like to see less box. I always wonder how people water these boxes on a second floor. I would hate to have to get water from a bathroom or something.

Second story window box

 Here’s another railing box and this one is SO good. What a great tie in to the gardens below.

Railing box

What does your ideal window box look like? You can see how I planted mine up this year here. I’ll post an update on my containers soon. 

jack barnwell mackinac window box
by Erin @ The Impatient Gardener 
3 Comments

About Erin @ The Impatient Gardener

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previous post: CHICKEN-RESISTANT PLANTS + THE CUTEST COOP
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Comments

  1. LINDA from Each Little World says: August 4, 2017 at 6:50 pm

    Love the shade box. I will be doing more posts on our trip

    Reply
  2. Lisa Greenbow says: August 4, 2017 at 8:33 pm

    I like the draping plants a lot in a window box. Maybe some of these will appear more drapey when the plants mature. I like color too. I really like the shade box with the lavender accents on the box. It makes the plants pop.

    Reply
  3. Kristin says: March 25, 2023 at 6:47 am

    Hi Erin! Thanks for this post. Can you recommend dimensions for building a window box? Mine can be about 3 feet wide, but I want to make sure it’s deep enough. Perhaps there’s a building tutorial you can recommend?

    Reply

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The Impatient Gardener

Do you love gardening? Me too! I'm Erin and I garden in Southeastern Wisconsin, zone 5. The Impatient Gardener is all about real-life gardening: the good parts, the bad bits and even the funny stuff. It's part information, part inspiration and a little bit commiseration. Thanks for visiting.

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Erin Schanen 🌿 The Impatient Gardener
These sister dahlias are big, beautiful girls. Pen These sister dahlias are big, beautiful girls. Penhill Watermelon (first picture) and Penhill Dark Monarch are the best two HUGE dahlias that I grow. They share slightly twisty petals (Watermelon more so) and, when you look closely, subtle striations that add a beautiful depth of color. Watermelon grows taller than Dark Monarch (7 feet tall or more sometimes) and they both need serious staking, but it’s worth it because they produce a lot of flowers for a large-flowering dahlia. 

I like them both but if I was forced to choose (and who would make me do that?) I’d give the edge to Dark Monarch because it’s a little easier to manage size-wise, produces more flowers and has a bigger variation in flower color so it’s always interesting. 

Which do you like better?
I don’t love tools that only do one thing. But w I don’t love tools that only do one thing. But when there’s only one tool that does that one thing really well, I’m here for it. This pottery/container knife from Sneeboer makes it possible to actually get plants out of pots without breaking or damaging the pot. It’s also really expensive. 😀
A little snippet of a bouquet from the weekend. Zi A little snippet of a bouquet from the weekend. Zinnias, pycnanthemum muticum and bronze fennel shown here.
My love for Nicotiana is not a secret. I love tryi My love for Nicotiana is not a secret. I love trying out new varieties and I feel like they just work so well in my garden from both a design standpoint and a cultural standpoint (they are happy here). Because I grow so many, the ones that self sow can be surprises. 

All of these self-sown Nicotiana are probably at least partly the children of the F1 hybrid Perfume series, which grow to be about 24” tall or so. Last year I grew purple, pink, white and lime versions and these are likely new variations on those. 

Picture 3 is, in my opinion, a good example of how these self sown second-year hybrids can go wrong. I’ll probably rip that one out. 😀

And the last photo is of my favorite colorway, lime, popping up amongst the Zinnias. I find these self-sown Nicotiana popping up all summer, so there’s always a fresh-blooming supply. 

Are you as enamored with Nicotinana as I am?
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