Colorful Spring Container Garden Recipes

If you’ve ever wondered why some hues look better together, it comes down to the color wheel. Just as painters consider color combinations in art, gardeners can apply the same rules when choosing plants. Mark Thompson, co-owner of The Shop, a garden boutique in Birmingham, Alabama, shares some great combinations to brighten up your home’s exterior for a colorful container garden in late spring and early summer.

hat trick

For this sun-drenched container, Thompson chose a three-color scheme with colors equidistant on the wheel. “In the old-fashioned way, [I incorporated] This design incorporates three different growth habits. There is something bushy as a filling, something that spills out at the bottom, and a thriller that pops out from the top. ” he says.

material: Yellow Melanpodium, ‘Truffula Pink’ Gomphrena, Plumbago, ‘Blue Days’ Evolution

Method: Start by planting a yellow melanpodium as a focal point, followed by a ‘Truffle Pink’ gomphrena for height. Next, add two blue flowers (Plumbago and ‘Blue Daze’ evolvulus) to drip down the front.

lots of purple

“There are no leaves other than the green of the flowering plants, which emphasizes the monochromatic feel,” says the garden pro, who selected three purple flowers. Hanging baskets perform best when watered twice a day, so it’s especially important to fertilize them regularly, Thompson notes. “If you water more often, you’re naturally leaching nutrients, so you need to put them back in,” he explains.

material: Sheet moss, angelonia, fan flower, million bells

Method: To add more texture, Thompson first covered the planters with sheets of moss. On the inside, burlap helps enclose the contents (you can also use foil or plastic with holes for this). Fill with loosely compacted soil to about 2 1/2 inches from the top and plant flowers such as angelonias, fanflowers, and million bells.

high contrast

Although there are an infinite number of complementary colors, Thompson chose the most striking combination for this planter: red and green. “We usually associate this combination with Christmas, so it’s a nice change to see this combination used in a very summery way,” he says. Whether used in a window box or in a pot on the porch, this low-maintenance combo will thrive all summer long with moderate water and sunlight. This English container contains two types of asparagus ferns and a variety of red flowers.

material: Plumosa and millet asparagus ferns, ‘Solenia Red’ begonias, ivy geraniums, New Guinea impatiens.

Method: “When planting, you almost always work from large to small,” Thompson says. Here, I first placed the begonias to give them room to fall gently over the edges, then added other plants around them to fill in the gaps and give them dimension.

better together

In this combo, a pair of rust-toned terracotta pots lends a split-complementary approach to color. “When grouping pots, he likes to divide by putting one plant in each container to give the eye a place to rest,” says Thompson.

material: Purple angelonia, ‘Orange Marmalade’ crossandra, ornamental oregano, purple fan flower

Method: In the planter on the left, purple angelonias stand tall, with a summer-loving ‘Orange Marmalade’ crossandra in the middle and cool green ornamental oregano hanging around the edges. To make things easier, purple fan flowers (scaevola) completely fill her second container.

burst of shine

Using a similar color palette (colors that sit next to each other on the wheel) as a guide, Thompson selected bright pinks and oranges as the main elements of this container, and yellow-green as accents. “It’s designed to be placed against a wall, growing from the highest point to the lowest point,” he says.

material: ‘Electric Lime’ Coleus, Pentas, Bicolor Lantana, ‘Silver Falls’ Dichondra

Method: Starting at the back, plant the ‘Electric Lime’ coleus. Next, add coral-colored penta and tuck bi-colored lantana on either side of it. ‘Silver Falls’ dichondra descends the front of the bamboo container to complete the look. “It’s a fun plant that grows really long. When you want a haircut, you just trim it with scissors,” says Thompson.