A window box, sitting snugly on a sill or fixed beneath a window, offers the chance to change your outlook with every season and to enhance the facade of your home. The most attractive window boxes are often those in which the colours are vibrant and the vigour of the plants creates a swirling mass that obscures the box and almost envelops the window it is dressing.
Even in the confined space of a window box it is possible to create a variety of styles. A limited palette of one colour plus foliage plants - for example, a rich red geranium with ivy-would provide a vibrant, yet formal style and will have most impact when viewed from a distance. Pastel petunias, with lobelia in complementary colours, and trails of fuchsia, suggest a more relaxed, country style.
Silver and grey is a deservedly popular colour combination for foliage in window boxes. Add a white or cream variegated ivy or white-flowered lobelia to add highlights to a cool contemporary display.
For a north-facing window use ivy, box or busy lizzies, which all thrive in shade, as well as ferns, and cyclamen. In full sun try the floriferous diascias in a range of pastel colours.
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