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| Photo Credit: Lane Greer |
| Grow your special and unique plants in a special and unique container. |
A trough is like any other plant container, except that it’s made from cement.
“Why do I want a heavy cement container?” you may ask. Primarily because of the fascinating plants you can grow in them – usually rare or unique plants, ones that are so small, no one would ever see them in a landscape garden. Troughs also allow you to create special microenvironments to suit the plants that need them, like cacti or sedums. Alpines and rock garden plants are favorites for troughs, too, because they need excellent drainage, which is easy to provide in a trough. (Plus, concrete planters just look pretty cool.) What’s more, this is a great shared activity for family and friends. (It’s also easier for two people to mix the ingredients, as well as carry around the finished product.) The materials cost about $50, and you’ll likely have enough material to make two troughs – one for you and one for your assistant.
Here’s what you’ll need:
● Fine peat moss (or coir) – Peat and coir are packaged in bags from 8 quarts to 3.8 cubic feet. (I would err on the side of having too much, since you can always use peat or coir elsewhere in your garden.)
● Portland cement, type I or II – Do not use concrete! You can find this cement at home improvement or hardware stores in 50-lb. bags, but often you can’t buy less than 70 lbs.
● Perlite (You can use coarse sand instead, but the trough will be much heavier.) Buy a big bag – they’re huge, but light as a feather. Home supply stores usually sell smaller bags, so you might want to buy two. (Like the peat moss, you can always use excess perlite later.)
● Concrete bonding primer – Available at home supply stores in the concrete section
● Chopped glass fiber or concrete reinforcing fiber – also available at home supply stores in the concrete section.
● A bucket – 1 or 2 gallons is best.
● Water
● A large piece of disposable plastic, like a trash bag
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