Field Notes No. 7 — Container Displays and the Uncomfortable In-Between

Hello Reader, The patio shelf was clean. The plants were ready. I had been painting terracotta pots all week in a charcoal-colored lime wash, to coordinate with a rust and deep purple palette that I could already see in my mind. Something cohesive, intentional, and beautiful. I carried everything outside and arranged it the way I imagined. I was expecting to step back and see an image worthy of Claus Dalby's container gardening book. When I stepped back, all I saw was an average group of...