Where To Buy Troughs For Gardening In Dallas

Trough gardening is one of the hottest trends in the country. At the store, these containers go by names like stock tank, feed trough, water trough and my choice, the horse trough. They might not grace the landscapes of Highland Park in Dallas or River Oaks in Houston, but they are popping up at high end shopping centers like The Landings in Columbus and specially designed communities like Old Town in North Columbus.

If you do an online search of trough gardening, you'll find this trend blazing across the country. And word on the street is these are getting hard to find.

There is a trough that will allow you to grow just about anything you want to grow. You could have an exotic water feature, flower garden, or several for a deluxe raised-bed vegetable garden. The 36-inch tall containers are ideal for people who use wheelchairs and motorized assistance or have trouble bending over. These can become the vegetable or flower gardens for all abilities.

You'll find a lot of instructions on how to set one up, and without disparaging any of their suggestions I'll just tell you how it is being done in my town, by son James. The oldest troughs in Columbus are about 10 years old, and keeping their integrity beautifully, after all these are galvanized steel.

These were originally attached to wooden piano type dollies with wheels or casters. These deteriorated over time and the containers are now moved by muscle if needed. Some of the new containers in other locations have wheels, others do not.

The containers are filled to one-third the depth with aged or even composted pine bark with potting soil comprising the remainder. The containers have drainage plug holes resembling those you might see on an ice chest. These containers have a dual purpose serving as a barrier to prevent encroachment of a vehicle. You will see on the internet, however, these have become works of art by many gardeners in the home situation.

In Columbus they are scheduled for a cool season planting from fall through April and a warm season redesign from late April through early October. In a commercial setting like these, they are first planted with a controlled-release fertilizer and then watered as needed from a 250-gallon tank with dilute water-soluble fertilizer as the seasons progress.

Today at The Landings, situated between a favorite diner and a frozen yogurt business is a playground for the client's children. It is decorated with an iconic lime-green picket fence. Here are the oldest troughs with plants like Truffula Pink Gomphrena, Rockin Blue Suede Shoes, salvia, Luscious Royale Cosmo lantana and Supertunia Vista Fuchsia and Supertunia Vista Snowdrift falling over the edge. You see, while the customers think they are seeing flowers, they are really seeing a shopping center habitat, attracting bees, butterflies, hummingbirds and little green lizards.

Norman Winter is a horticulturist and national garden speaker. He is a former director of the Coastal Georgia Botanical Gardens. Follow him on Facebook at Norman Winter "The Garden Guy." See more photos and columns by Norman Winter at SavannahNow.com/lifestyle/home-garden/.