Container Gardens for the Midwest

Bob Stekfo

Fast, fabulous and fun, container gardens add zing to any deck, patio or yard. Check out our ideas for pretty plant combinations just right for the Midwest.

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Purple State

Bob Stekfo

Bring life to your patio with container gardens of terra-cotta pots and purple hues. This plant includes Areca Palm, Rex Begonia, caladium, purple shamrock and variegated ivy. Read more about this container.

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Sitting pretty

A long planter chock-full of flowers and foliage substitutes for a window box on a porch railing. ‘Goldilocks' creeping Jenny, ‘Burlesque' pigeon berry, Madagascar dragon tree, calibrochoa and coleus create a lush mix of upright and trailing plants.

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Resin hanging baskets

A cross between UFOs and spinning tops, resin hanging baskets from Urbilis hover like a garden chandelier. They're filled with ‘Inky Fingers' coleus and ‘Angelina' sedum.

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Cottage garden

A colorful miniature cottage garden in a container will thrive throughout the summer. See our step-by-step instructions for creating this container.

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Tropical movement

Containers are ideal hosts for specimens that you normally wouldn't plant in a Midwest garden, such as this tropical blood banana paired with trailing geraniums and scaevola.

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Go grassy

Containers with ornamental grasses provide easy-care drama. For greater impact, combine different textures, heights, colors and plumes. These tough plants will still look great at the end of the season. In containers such as this one, the flowers hide the base of the grass and can be switched out as blooms fade. Read more: How to Use Ornamental Grasses in Midwest Gardens

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Tabletop display

A granite remnant elevates and unifies a collection of pots on this side table. (Stone suppliers often discount the small pieces left over from cutting countertops.) Choose one large plant-in this case, the swooping spruce-as a focal point, then surround it with smaller plants that also have intriguing silhouettes. From left: Japanese holly, aloe, ‘Skylands' oriental spruce and agave.

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Triple play

Follow this three-part plan for lush containers. Begin with a "thriller," an upright star player such as this calla lily. Next, add in one or two complementary "fillers," which can include foliage or flowering plants like lantana and geraniums. Finish with a "spiller"-in this case livingstone daisy ‘Mezoo Trailing Red'-that cascades over the edge.

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Stylish shapes

Basic geometric forms become affordable building blocks to a stylish landscape. Here, concrete and granite orbs (and even bowling balls) echo rounded plants such as ornamental kales and coleus topiaries. Big-leaf tropical plants like elephant's ear cut a striking figure in a large, bright ceramic pot. The homeowner didn't want to close off the property with a traditional privacy fence, so he assembled planks and posts into a few rectangular screens and strategically placed them by his side yard and back dining area.

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Up high

Gardeners often overlook vertical space. Use freestanding or hanging containers to give your garden three-dimensional color. In this container: 'Ramblin' Violet' Wave petunia, strawflower (Bracteantha bracteata), and 'Cuzco Yellow' creeping zinnia (Sanvitalia procumbens).

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Raised beds

Ten manhole risers from a local concrete pipe company create an unusual twist to the typical raised bed. The homeowner rolled the 2x36-inch rings into place and stacked them five-high (no mortar required). The beds hold tomatoes, kale, peppers, sorrel, basil and parsley. In winter, you can fill the bare spots with castaway Christmas trees.

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Bold welcome

Four containers make a bold welcome in front of an Ohio home. Plants include Canna 'Australis', reddish orange New Guinea impatiens, purple petunia, Ipomea, angelonia, cleome, colus, Scaevola, lantana, kangaroo paws, Algerian ivy and croton.

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Paradise garden

A teal container at an Ohio home showcases bird of paradise, lantana, angelonia, Euphorbia corolatta, coleus, Mexican flame flower, pink salvia, heliotrope and Phygelius.

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Containment policy

Ohio garden designer Kevin Reiner likes to plant some containers with single species, such as warm green honeysuckle, to help them stand out. But he also teams his go-to pink impatiens with green trailers for contrast. Kevin likes the visual impact of large, ornate and unusually shaped containers.

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Fanning out

A Chinese fan palm spreads above 'Alligator tears' coleus, 'Marguerite' sweet potato vine, angel-wing begonia and orange New Guinea impatiens.

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Bright shade-loving annuals

This container garden features a bold palette of red and chartreuse—"thrillers, fillers and spillers."

• ‘Garden Meister' fuchsia (thriller)

• Fancy-leaf coleus (filler)

• ‘Marguerite' sweet potato vine, yellow calibrachoa and variegated potato vine (spillers)

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Attractive trio

Goat's beard, sweet potato vine ‘Sweetheart Purple' and Superbells ‘Lemon' combine for a pretty grouping in a vintage container.

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Fantastic foliage

Texture and color combine to create a forget-about-flowers mix that thrives in full sun. Contrast the fine ‘Sky Rocket' fountaingrass with the bold, burgundy leaves of Big Red Judy coleus. Trailing over the edge are velvety ‘Atomic Snowflake' scented geranium (left) and creeping thyme (right).

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Vibrant color

Balance zingy chartreuse or lime-green foliage with pink, orange or purple blooms. Magenta Petchoa SuperCal ‘Neon Rose' and coral/orange Petchoa SuperCal ‘Terra Cotta' pop against the chartreuse leaves of Wasabi coleus. This full-sun mix will look good all summer long.

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All in a row

Unify your landscaping by repeating color and shape with similar or identical containers. This technique is especially effective along a path or on a long wall such as the one at left. The containers hold a purple-leaf coleus and creeping Jenny (Lysimachia 'Goldilocks').

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Plant pedestal

An Iowa homeowner alternately stacked two sizes of circular pavers to create a sculptural plant stand for a cheerful yellow container. "By bringing the pot closer to eye level," he explains, "you can better appreciate the succulents' details."

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Vines so fine

Vines can give your container garden height, shape and visual interest. Here, a Spanish flag twines upward to add the finishing touch in a colorful planting:-
- Zinnia haageana 'Persian Carpet'
-- Petunia 'Ultra Blue'
-- Coleus (Solenostemon 'Alabama Sunrise')
-- Spanish flag (Ipomoea lobata)
-- Vinca 'Illumination'

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Splashes of color

This bright and fresh combo exudes charm. Echeveria 'Perle Von Nurnberg' pops in its surrounding of the lime-green Plectranthus 'Limelight'. And purple petunias and pink blossoms crown the arrangement with a touch of sweetness.

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Good companions

Container designs should have plants with the same sun, soil and water requirements. Good companions include a variety of sedums and other succulents. The larger container at left features 'Bon Bon' (Sedum reflexum) for height with 'Angelina' (Sedum rupestre) and hens and chicks (Sempervivum) to fill. More 'Angelina' is in a companion pot.

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Hang ups

Contain aggressive spreaders like creeping Jenny in pots and hanging baskets where the foliage adds lushness but is kept in bounds.

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Elevated view

Build drama into your garden scene by elevating container gardens on pedestals. This elevated urn contains Fuchsia 'Gardenmeister Bonstedt', Euphorbia corollata and golden creeping Jenny.

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Color contrast

Contrasting colors create eye-catching appeal. Here, Tiger Eyes staghorn sumac stands alone in a pot of contrasting color.

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Going solo

Sometimes one plant is all you need for a striking container garden. Aeonium arboreum 'Zwartkop' carries off solo style with ease.

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Air time

Metal orbs give air plants (bromeliads) an unexpected lift.

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Texture play

Different textures of plants-fluffy, smooth, shiny, ruffled-add interest to your container garden. This container features white mandevilla, coleus, lantana, white penta, angelonia and variegated ivy.

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Tall accent

For extra drama in a pot, use plants of varying heights. The spiky, red leaves of Cordyline ‘Crimson Star' rise above the star-shape flowers of ‘Graffiti Violet' geranium. Supertunia Watermelon Charm gracefully spills over the edge. This arrangement does well in full sun.

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Garden on wheels

Plant a rainbow of annuals in a wagon for a portable garden. Be sure to drill a hole in the bottom of the wagon to provides drainage.We used these annuals for a bright color mix: Horned violet (Viola cornuta 'Sorbet Plum Velvet'), French dwarf marigold (Tagetes 'Bonanza Orange'), Lobelia erinus 'Riviera Midnight Blue', variegated Swedish ivy (Plectranthus coleoides 'Variegatus'), sunflower (Helianthus annuus 'Big Smile'), floss flower (Ageratum houstonianum 'Blue Danube') and Petunia milliflora 'Fantasy Red'.

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Informal summer planting

Trailing vines, willow branches, creeping myrtle and fountaingrass give a relaxed, flowing feel to this container garden, created in a 24-inch galvanized-metal tub. For a more formal summer planting, see the next slide.Here's what we used:
-- Three 8-inch pots of fountaingrass (Miscanthus sinensis 'Autumn Light')
-- Two 8-inch pots of sweet potato vine (lpomoea batatas)
-- 12 willow (Salix spp.) branches
-- Three 6-inch pots of marigolds (Tagetes spp.)
-- One 8-inch pot of creeping myrtle (Vinca minor 'Variegata')

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Easy-care succulents

Succulents are a snap to grow and need almost no care. Most succulents prefer full sun, well-drained soil and good air circulation. Use a potting mix designed specifically for succulents or cacti. Water potted succulents regularly during the growing season, but don't overwater. Always water the plants at their base instead of overhead. Feed succulents monthly with a balanced plant food.Both containers in the photo hold Echeveria spp.; the one in the front also has cobweb houseleek (Sempervivum arachnoideum) trailing over the side.

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Dark style

Stylish dark plants add drama to container gardens. This container combines Canna 'Australis', verbena, sweet potato vine, 'Midnight Lace', angelonia and Scaevola.

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Container Gardens for the Midwest

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Purple State

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Sitting pretty

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Resin hanging baskets

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Cottage garden

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Tropical movement

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Go grassy

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Tabletop display

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Triple play

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Stylish shapes

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Up high

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Raised beds

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Bold welcome

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Paradise garden

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Containment policy

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Fanning out

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Bright shade-loving annuals

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Attractive trio

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Fantastic foliage

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Vibrant color

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All in a row

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Plant pedestal

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Vines so fine

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Splashes of color

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Good companions

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Hang ups

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Elevated view