Are you a gardener? I like the idea of gardening, but I’ve never done more than dabble. I plant a window box and do a few potted plants here and there, but I’ve never really plunged in. I think it’s because you have to be willing to engage in a lot of trial and error. I’m not the biggest risk-taker in the world, but I’m working on it.

Last year’s window box was simply awful. I accidentally bought the world’s smallest geraniums—I swear they never grew more than about four inches. And since the window box is the first thing you see as you come down our driveway (it’s underneath the bonus room window over the garage), it kind of bummed me out all summer.

So this year I was determined to plant an absolutely gorgeous window box.

The Plan: Spend time researching the best possible plants to create a lush, beautiful window box. Measure the window box so I could select the correct number of plants to best fill the space. Shop for the best deals.

What Actually Happened: In between other errands, I ran into Gertens and threw myself on the mercy of a nice retired gentleman working there. After I explained what I was looking for, Ron took the situation in hand and picked out some very lovely plants. He gamely went along with “It’s about this big” when I tried to explain the window box’s size and helped me calculate the number of plants I’d need. Thanks to this conversation, at least I knew which direction the window box faces.

This is what Ron put together:

• Sonic Lilac New Guinea Impatiens (I always thought these needed to be in the shade, but apparently not. We’ll see what happens.)
• Chartreuse sweet potato vines to hang over the front. Even I recognize these from magazine photos of window boxes.
• Purple moon wishbone flowers. Ron said these look great mixed in with the sweet potato vines, so I bought three.
• One Gulliver White Scopia. Ron said he always likes a little splash of white in the front. Whatever you say, boss.

I’ll be eagerly watching to see if the plants fill out and create that gorgeous look I’m hoping for. If not, I’ll have more information on what not to do next year. The old trial and error.