what to do before going on holidays

• mow the lawn
• drain the rain barrels with soaker hoses and leave the hoses attached
• deadhead annuals
• move all the pots to one spot on the patio to make it easier for the teenager next door to water them
• deadhead perennials that are finished or almost finished blooming, if there’s time (I doubt it)

 

Not that I don’t trust the teenager next door, but I took pictures of all my pots in case they don’t look as good when I get back.  I don’t claim to be any kind of container artist, though.  These are all planted with a few staples I pick up every year (sweet allysum and petunias for scent, snapdragons for their frost tolerance, impatiens for shade), stuff from around the house, and whatever else my Mom had left over after planting up her containers.  Anyway, here they are: