Tri-City Herald Logo

Filled pots fill void on patio for Kennewick woman | Tri-City Herald

×
  • E-edition
  • Home
    • Customer Service
    • Archives
    • Buy Photos and Pages
    • Contact Us
    • Mobile & Apps
    • Newsletters
    • Subscribe
    • Subscriber Services

    • News
    • Local News
    • Crime
    • Education
    • Hanford
    • Northwest
    • Nation & World
    • Obituary Listings
    • Politics
    • Elections
    • Health
    • Weird
    • Photos
    • Weather
    • Videos
    • Sports
    • Local Sports
    • Preps
    • Prep Countdown
    • Seattle Seahawks
    • Seattle Mariners
    • Tri-City Americans
    • Tri-City Dust Devils
    • Tri-Cities Fever
    • Hydros
    • Photos
    • Outdoors
    • Blogs
    • College
    • NFL
    • MLB
    • NBA
    • NHL
    • MLS
    • Golf
    • Politics
    • Business
    • Public Records
    • National Business
    • Technology
    • Entertainment
    • Local Arts
    • Celebrity
    • Mr. Movie
    • Movie Times
    • Movie News
    • Music News
    • Calendar
    • Submit Event
    • Puzzles & Games
    • Contests
    • Living
    • Food & Wine
    • Wine Press NW
    • Antique Appraisals
    • Health & Science
    • Home & Garden
    • Light Notes
    • Religion
    • Spiritual Life
    • Births
    • Engagements
    • Weddings
    • Anniversaries
    • Opinion
    • Letters
    • Editorials
    • National
    • Editorial Cartoons
    • Submit Letter
    • Guest Columnists
  • Obituaries

  • Classifieds
  • Jobs
  • Moonlighting
  • Cars
  • Homes
  • Place An Ad

  • About Us
  • Mobile & Apps

Home & Garden

Filled pots fill void on patio for Kennewick woman

By Loretto J. Hulse, Herald staff writer

    ORDER REPRINT →

June 20, 2009 12:00 AM

KENNEWICK -- Creating a garden oasis out of a 16-by-16 patio outside her condo's back door didn't take a miracle, "just a lot of creativity," said Lee Petkevicius of Kennewick.

Most would have simply plopped a couple of plants in pots on either side of their door or perhaps added a bench and a table for comfort. But not Petkevicius.

True, she did opt for pots, but lots of them. She added a splashing fountain in one corner and this year sent clematis vines up the walls. Frog statues peep from between pots while wind chimes and a spinner dangle from the garage and house eaves.

When Petkevicius and her husband, Frank, downsized from their house in Kennewick to their present condo she said, "I found I missed the dirt. I missed my plants."

SIGN UP

Sign Up and Save

Get six months of free digital access to the Tri-City Herald

SUBSCRIBE WITH GOOGLE

#ReadLocal

Then she remembered a trip she and Frank made to Carmel, Calif.

"They had pots and pots all along the walkways there," she said. "So I told Frank, that's it. I'll just have a Carmel garden."

She admits gardening in such a small area is challenging.

"You have to be creative and use every inch," Petkevicius said.

But gardening in pots does have advantages: Weeding, for example. They're few and far between.

Changing the look of the garden is easy too. Just rearrange the pots.

Watering she says takes a while, especially when the summer heat beats down.

"But I find it soothing to come out in the morning and visit my plants," she said.

Petkevicius prefers pots that are 8 to 10 inches in diameter and larger because they don't dry out as fast as smaller containers.

"Plus you can put more color in them," she said.

Petkevicius uses a rainbow mix of annuals and perennials including grasses.

"I look for different textures and like to mix colors," she said. "You just have to keep in mind whether the container will be in shade or sun and get plants that have the same needs."

To give the plants a good start, Petkevicius adds an organic soil conditioner to the potting soil and fertilizes them regularly.

Her determination to garden is proof as Petkevicius said, "with a little creativity you can make any area much nicer."

Even a slab of concrete can be a garden.

* Loretto J. Hulse: 509-582-1513; lhulse@tricityherald.com.

See more of the Herald's Home & Garden stories at www.tricityhomeandgarden.com/.

  Comments  

Videos

Here are eight vegetables to grow during winter

In 90 Seconds: How to take care of outdoor plants during a winter freeze

View More Video

Trending Stories

Pasco third-grader’s death may be linked to E. coli

February 14, 2019 04:22 PM

Schools and others close on Friday or plan late starts

February 14, 2019 08:18 PM

Richland shooting linked to drugs, police suspect. Several arrested

February 15, 2019 08:20 AM

Is snowpocalypse over? Likely, but Tri-City roads may still be icy

February 14, 2019 09:07 AM

Kennewick Lions new football coach is no stranger to the region

February 14, 2019 07:20 PM

Read Next

Home & Garden

Hot Property: A mega-mogul’s desert showplace

By NEAL J. LEITEREG Los Angeles Times

    ORDER REPRINT →

February 15, 2019 12:00 AM

The onetime Palm Desert home of late Hollywood producer Jerry Weintraub returned to market last week for $6.9 million, and in three days had an offer in hand.

KEEP READING

Sign Up and Save

#ReadLocal

Get six months of free digital access to the Tri-City Herald

SUBSCRIBE WITH GOOGLE

MORE HOME & GARDEN

Home & Garden

On Gardening: Frank Houser camellia blossoms are enormous, offer rare beauty and a glimpse into a hero

February 14, 2019 12:00 AM

Home & Garden

On Gardening: Tropical style garden all about attitude

February 13, 2019 12:00 AM

Home & Garden

TV show update: Wofford family reflects on life-changing ‘Extreme’ home makeover, 15 years later

February 12, 2019 12:00 AM

Home & Garden

6 ways to prep for a home wedding

February 11, 2019 12:00 AM

Home & Garden

A historical home shifts into a more-contemporary aesthetic – and onto a new foundation 5 feet away

February 11, 2019 12:00 AM

Home & Garden

Regretting your DIY home project? You’re not alone

February 11, 2019 12:00 AM
Take Us With You

Real-time updates and all local stories you want right in the palm of your hand.

Icon for mobile apps

Tri-City Herald App

View Newsletters

Subscriptions
  • Start a Subscription
  • Customer Service
  • eEdition
  • Vacation Hold
  • Pay Your Bill
  • Rewards
Learn More
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Newsletters
  • News in Education
Advertising
  • Digital Solutions
  • Place a Classified
  • Local Deals
  • Contact Us
Copyright
Privacy Policy
Terms of Service


Back to Story