Container Garden Ideas

Will your planters be located outdoors? If so, choose containers based on your decor style and any climate concerns. Make sure your container is large enough to hold all of the plants you want to use (18 to 24 inches in diameter is a good size range to start with). Your container should have drainage holes in the bottom. You can also drill holes, if necessary.

In the garden, a water source should be easily accessible. That way, you can keep up with the watering schedule. You can also set up your containers with drip irrigation for easy, consistent watering.

The right soil is crucial to the success of your planting. Use high-quality potting soil with good water retention. Mix in the appropriate nutrients depending on the types of plants you've chosen. Feed plants every few weeks, or as recommended, with quality liquid fertilizer.

Often, plant combinations use the "thriller, filler, spiller" method. This is the easiest way to make your outdoor planter ideas come to life.

• Anchor the planter with a vertical, architectural-style plant as the "thriller" element.
• Surround it with a medium-height plant as "filler" to fill in additional space and frame the plant.
• Choose softer plants that tumble out of the edge of the container towards the ground. This is the "spiller."

The spiller is the element most likely to deliver a lush look to your finished planter. Even for seasonal containers, spiller options make them look like they experience a natural, annual growth. Generally, you’ll see cascading perennial groundcovers, with vibrant, multi-colored flowers. Popular container garden spillers include:

• Creeping jenny (Lysimachia nummularia), also called moneywort, is a tough perennial. Hardy in zones 2-10, it sports pairs of small, round, bright green (or chartreuse) leaves.
• Sweet potato vine (Ipomoea pandurata), an annual, has heart-shaped leaves and funnel-shaped, white flowers with a pinkish throat. While inedible, it does well in shade or sun, thriving in zones 9-11. But during summer’s hottest days, it may need extra water.
• English ivy (Hedera helix), with its cascading vines, lends a classic look to window boxes and containers. This plant has high drought tolerance. It's very hardy, typically thriving in zones 4-10 or 11 (even up to 13). English ivy prefers well-drained soil with partial shade. It’s a good groundcover or climbing plant. But as it can be invasive, plant it in containers, pruning it back each year.
• Supertunia is a petunia grown from cuttings. This versatile annual is grown in zones 3-9. They provide vibrant color from spring to frost. But they also do well as a perennial in warmer climates, in zones 10 and 11. While heat-tolerant and loving full sun, they can also handle light frost and temps in the 30s once established. Supertunia should be watered consistently for full, healthy blooms, and trimmed in mid-summer.
• Succulents, which retain moisture in drier areas, are a good spiller choice. You may prefer Donkey’s tail, also called burro’s tail (Sedum morganianum). This cascading plant, known for its bunches of bean-shaped leave, thrives in zones 10 and 11. Another option is string of pearls (Senecio rowleyanus). This trailing succulent is drought-tolerant, thriving in zones 9-12. It should be watered infrequently, drying out significantly between waterings.

Use planters to rotate a seasonal array of annuals as a punctuation for your decor. You can easily swap out the spring's washed pastels for the sunny yellows of summer. Consider using vibrant reds and oranges for fall. Christmas favorites, like poinsettias, brighten the holiday season. And give seasonally appropriate planters a try for an even more festive touch.

Want a welcoming burst of color? Arrange a planter collection along a walkway or flanking an entry door. You can group small or medium-sized containers for maximum impact. A corner filled with terracotta containers of many sizes will look luxurious. You may use the "thriller-filler-spiller" approach here, too. But put the tallest in the center or back. Then, place groups of fillers in the middle and arrange cascading elements around the perimeter.

Take your gardening to new heights by creating a vertical garden wall. Vertical garden planters are both architecturally interesting and space-saving.

You can create edible gardens in planters with herbs. Or you may consider growing compact vegetable varieties, such as lettuces, kale, cherry tomatoes and peppers. These smaller varieties often have generous yields. You can keep a container of herbs growing indoors year-round.

Tip: Use a large container and add frames or tomato cages to combine low-growing and climbing vegetables. This lets you grow more in less space.

Ornamental grasses are easy and low-maintenance plants that add drama to your landscape. Plant ornamental grasses in tall, narrow planters to complement the plants' shape. Learn more about types of ornamental grasses.

Go coastal by creating a beachside scene in a planter. Fill a wide, shallow planter with potting soil. Then, choose two or three succulents or small ornamental grasses. Arrange the plants in the soil and add play sand. You'll then decorate it with pieces of beach glass, shells or small driftwood. You can also plant a single beach plant in a large shell for an interesting memento of your beach vacation.

Found objects can make interesting planters or flowerpot holders, depending upon their construction. For example, an old ceramic bathtub makes a good outdoor planter, with minimal construction required. Place the tub in the sun or shade, then fill it with soil and plants. The drain at the bottom removes excess water. Alternatively, simply fill it with a layer of river rock or gravel. You can group smaller planters inside the tub. This will make it easy to seasonally rotate plants in and out of the quirky landscape feature.

A large, sturdy planter can become temporary living garden furniture. Position an 18-inch stone planter near your patio furniture, in a lightly shaded area. Plant with hardy, drought-tolerant succulents. But leave about 4 to 6 inches of room from the top of the tallest plant to the container's rim. Cover the planter with a tempered glass tabletop, about 24 inches in diameter. This combination table and greenhouse make an interesting patio feature. Plus, the top will only have to be removed periodically for watering.

Tip: Do you want to reduce the overall weight and the amount of soil needed for large containers? Partially fill them with packing peanuts or empty plastic bottles. Spread a layer of newspaper and then cover with potting mix.

For an easy project, find an area on the porch that needs a pop of color. Install hooks and chains. Then, select your plants of choice. Choose a ready-made container with colors and flowers you love for either a sunny or shady spot.

Remember to read plant tags to understand how much and when to feed your plants. When the top of the soil is dry to the touch, water until it trickles out the drainage holes.

You can also get creative with finishing touches. Use a planted hanging basket in a container. Just cut off the hangers, and pop it in a container for instant color. Learn more about planting hanging baskets.

Spring and summer are the ideal seasons to decorate your front porch, balcony or patio. You can display annuals and perennials in hanging baskets and other containers. Bigger is certainly better when it comes to curb appeal. But container gardening can instantly create a show-stopping focal point.

Large containers (18 inches in diameter and up) have the advantage of holding more soil. And while they need less irrigation, they also hold more plants. If planter pots become difficult to move, use plant caddies for portability. Read more in How to Create a Container Garden.

• Choose soilless potting mix. Lightweight, well-draining, moisture-retaining potting soil is the key to providing adequate drainage. But it is still able to nourish plant roots. An exception is if you’re planting succulents. In that case, choose the soilless potting mix designed especially for desert and cactus plants.
• Regularly feed plants with an organic fertilizer. All that watering and blooming means nutrients get washed out. Fertilize them once a month to keep the show going.
• Consistently water. Roots are more compact in a container. So, frequent watering is necessary to keep plants happy. If you have a lot of containers, consider drip irrigation to help out with the watering. In summer's heat, most containers will need to be watered at least every other day, and sometimes twice in one day. On the other hand, some plants like it dry. Ornamental grasses, succulents, sedums, geraniums, zinnias and marigolds can take hot and dry conditions. Herbs, like rosemary, oregano, sage and thyme, can take the heat, too.
• As you get ready for the season, do you know how to clean last year’s planters? Discard all plant material and soil. You can use a scrub brush to remove any stubborn dirt and salt deposits. Get a big container, such as a wheelbarrow or large galvanized tub. Fill it with 10 parts water to 1 part bleach (a 10 percent bleach solution). Submerge the pots and let them soak for 10 minutes. Scrub the pots, then rinse and leave them in the sun to dry.