Repotting Plants on my Balcony

Am I the only one who waits way too long to re-pot plants? My excuse for the moment is that they've just been growing too quickly to keep up with lately, and potting soil is getting right up there with gasoline on my list of expensive natural resources. A recent trip to Lowes yielded some very cheap (and chic!) containers, so I had the perfect motivation to go out there and clumsily spread dirt all over the balcony in an attempt to re-pot some pants. Now I just have some sweeping to do...

I got this Furcraea (I think) as an offset growing on a spent flower stalk at Disney during our honeymoon. I checked with one of the cast members and he said that it was okay, by the way. I rooted it in about an inch of potting soil and watched it grow at an alarming rate despite the fact that there was hardly any soil to speak of! This morning the plant became so top heavy that it actually fell out of the pot. Until I find a bigger container, I figure this recycled plastic one will do just fine.

These are the super-cute containers that we purchased at Lowes the other day. The little fuschia pot begged to be planted with something bright to set off the intense hue, so a rhipsalis hybrid made a perfect match. The tillandsia on top is normally white, but was recently watered so it looks gray in the photo.

The large white container is an exact replica of the one adorning a dracaena in our house, but this one was planted with a purple leaved Vriesea sucrei hybrid to complement the small purple container. The white pot also pairs with the white (when dry) tillandsia.

Here are some of the tropical shade loving plants on my balcony. I set some heavy metal baskets (freebies from work - were going to be trash) on the balcony ledge to organize my plants and to keep them from flying to their death on windy days. Those metal baskets aren't going anywhere! Once cooler weather arrives, the balcony will once again be the perfect place to write, read, draw and dine. A little sweeping wouldn't hurt either.
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