Skip to content

Top Navigation

Midwest Living Midwest Living
  • Travel
  • Food
  • Home
  • Garden
  • Holidays
  • Videos
  • current issue
  • Sweepstakes
  • Road Rally

Profile Menu

Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Newsletters
  • Email Preferences
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Win Your Dream Getaway!
  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Magazine Issues
  • Destinations
Login
Subscribe
Pin FB

Explore Midwest Living

Midwest Living Midwest Living
  • Explore

    Explore

    • 12 One-of-a-Kind Museums You Can Only Find in the Midwest

      12 One-of-a-Kind Museums You Can Only Find in the Midwest

      Spend the day interacting with paintings, pioneers and a U.S. president at these enlightening—and occasionally unconventional—stops. Read More
    • Out Now: Best of the Midwest 2022

      Out Now: Best of the Midwest 2022

      Find your summer adventure with our new bookazine, available now in the magazine store! Read More
    • This Family's Garden Farm is a Nature-Filled Paradise

      This Family's Garden Farm is a Nature-Filled Paradise

      On land passed down through generations, a Wisconsin family experiences—and shares—the glory of gardening. Read More
  • Travel

    Travel

    See All Travel
    Urban-Pop Art, a New Boutique Hotel and More—Here's What to See and Do in Fort Wayne Right Now

    Urban-Pop Art, a New Boutique Hotel and More—Here's What to See and Do in Fort Wayne Right Now

    On a trip to Fort Wayne, Indiana, catch a colorful wave of fresh development, plus a new hotel from the cofounder of Vera Bradley.
    • Weekend Getaways
    • Family Travel
    • Around the Region
    • Beyond the Region
    • Illinois
    • Indiana
    • Iowa
    • Kansas
    • Michigan
    • Minnesota
    • Missouri
    • Nebraska
    • North Dakota
    • Ohio
    • South Dakota
    • Wisconsin
    • Free Travel Info
  • Food

    Food

    See All Food
    Mango Toast with Prosciutto

    Mango Toast with Prosciutto

    • Comfort Foods
    • Desserts & Baking
    • Breakfast
    • Quick & Easy
    • Chicken
    • Soups & Stews
    • Midwest Favorites
    • Fruits & Vegetables
    • Fish
    • Grilling
  • Home

    Home

    See All Home
    5 Clever Tips for Repurposing a Potting Bench as a Bar Cart

    5 Clever Tips for Repurposing a Potting Bench as a Bar Cart

    With smart accessorizing, a potting bench becomes a celebration station for summer soirees.
    • Quick Decorating
    • Featured Homes
    • Organizing & Storage
    • Outdoor Living
    • Seasonal Decorating
    • Room Decorating
  • Garden

    Garden

    See All Garden
    Expert Tips for Growing a Window Box Garden

    Expert Tips for Growing a Window Box Garden

    Casey Lawrence’s lush window boxes were a revelation to her online followers. Use her tips to grow your own.
    • Container Gardens
    • Flowers
    • Featured Gardens
    • Midwest Gardening Calendar
    • Garden Ideas & Inspiration
  • Holidays

    Holidays

    See All Holidays
    30 No-Cook Potluck and Picnic Recipes

    30 No-Cook Potluck and Picnic Recipes

    Assemble these recipes—great for potlucks, picnics or light family dinners—without turning on the oven or range. They are the perfect way to help you keep your cool.
    • Easter
    • July 4th
    • Thanksgiving
    • Halloween
    • Christmas
    • Valentine's Day
  • Videos

    Videos

    See All Videos
    These DIY Orange Beeswax Candles Will Make Your Home Smell Amazing

    These DIY Orange Beeswax Candles Will Make Your Home Smell Amazing

    Don't toss those orange peels! Instead, use them as vessels for our super-simple and fragrant candles.
    • Brighten Your Front Door with This Colorful Easter Egg Wreath
    • These DIY Orange Beeswax Candles Will Make Your Home Smell Amazing
    • Ring in the New Year with This Glam Star Garland
    • How to Make a Modern Fruit Cake Box
    • An Eye-Catching Oval Treat Box You Can Make
    • Make a Colorful Paper Raffia Wreath to Welcome Fall
    • How to Make a Dried Floral Arrangement
    • How to Make an Easy Pina Colada
    • How to Make an Amazing Pavlova
    • How to Make Pumpkin-Spice Icebox Cake
    • How to Make an All-Butter Pie Crust
  • current issue

    current issue

    See All current issue
    About Us

    About Us

    • March/April 2022 Issue
    • January/February 2022 Issue
    • November/December 2021 Issue
    • September/October 2021 Issue
    • July/August 2021 Issue
    • May/June 2021 Issue
    • Summer 2022 Issue
  • Sweepstakes
  • Road Rally

Profile Menu

Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
Your Account

Account

  • Join Now
  • Newsletters
  • Email Preferences
  • Manage Your Subscription this link opens in a new tab
  • Help
  • Logout

More

  • Win Your Dream Getaway!
  • Give a Gift Subscription
  • Magazine Issues
  • Destinations
Login
Sweepstakes

Follow Us

  1. Midwest Living
  2. Garden
  3. Container Gardens
  4. Easy Container Water Gardens

Easy Container Water Gardens

June 01, 2012
Skip gallery slides
Pin
A splash of color
Make one of these 10 miniature water gardens in just minutes.
Start Slideshow

1 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Still waters

Still waters

Tall plants (elephant ear and dwarf papyrus) contrast with low-growing water lilies and water lettuce in a ceramic planter.Tips on how to create this and other water gardens>>

1 of 10

Advertisement
Advertisement

2 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Glazed garden

Glazed garden

This glazed terra-cotta pot sprouts a garden of two color of hardy water canna, dwarf papyrus and tropical pitcher plant.

2 of 10

3 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Lettuce bowl

Lettuce bowl

A bowl of water lettuce and water hyacinth is an easy table accent.

3 of 10

Advertisement

4 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Pint-sized charmers

Pint-sized charmers

Provide a colorful counterpoint to a rough-texture stone container by adding leafy rosettes of water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes), white water snowflakes (Nymphoides indica) and tiny Azolla fern.

4 of 10

5 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Feathery beauty

Feathery beauty

Combine four floating plants in a striking glass bowl: trailing parrot feather (Myriophyllum aquaticum), round-leaved frog's bit (Limnobium spongia), fan-like water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes) and red-tinged Azolla.Most water plants spread very quickly, so you may only need to buy one of each for your small garden. If you need to thin fast-growing plants from your container, be sure not to put them in natural waterways, where they can become invasive.

5 of 10

6 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Cheerful lilies

Cheerful lilies

Place hardy miniature waterlilies, such as these Nymphaea pygmaea 'Helvola', in a yellowware bowl.

6 of 10

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

7 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Color contrast

Color contrast

A pale stoneware bowl is a good choice for showing off burgundy-edged Phyllanthus fluitans, tiny-leaf duckweed (Lemna minor) and lavender-flower water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes).

7 of 10

8 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Elegant greens

Elegant greens

A glossy tureen holds an ensemble of lovely leaves: floating sensitive plant (Neptunia oleracea), water clover (Marsilea drummondii), water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes) and floating fern (Salvinia minima).

8 of 10

9 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

Floating trio

Floating trio

Set a trio of small floating plants--water lettuce (Pistia stratiotes), water poppy (Hydrocleys nymphoides) and oval-shape Salvinia--in a square pot. Even without the occasional yellow poppy blossoms, the composition boasts an interesting mix of pleated, shiny rounded, and tiny oval leaves.

9 of 10

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

10 of 10

Pin
Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message

A splash of color

A splash of color

Add color to enamelware with floating fern (Salvinia minima) and water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes), an easy-to-grow water plant.What happens to your tabletop garden in winter? In the Midwest, most water plants are grown as annuals. Some water plants can be overwintered indoors in an aquarium or in containers of wet, sandy loam; check with your local garden center for information specific to your area and the plants you have.

10 of 10

Replay gallery

Share the Gallery

Pinterest Facebook

Up Next

    Share the Gallery

    Pinterest Facebook
    Trending Videos
    Advertisement
    Skip slide summaries

    Everything in This Slideshow

    Advertisement

    View All

    1 of 10 Still waters
    2 of 10 Glazed garden
    3 of 10 Lettuce bowl
    4 of 10 Pint-sized charmers
    5 of 10 Feathery beauty
    6 of 10 Cheerful lilies
    7 of 10 Color contrast
    8 of 10 Elegant greens
    9 of 10 Floating trio
    10 of 10 A splash of color

    Share & More

    Facebook Tweet Email Send Text Message
    Midwest Living

    Magazines & More

    Learn More

    • Contact Us
    • Help
    • Free Newsletters this link opens in a new tab
    • Subscribe this link opens in a new tab
    • Customer Service this link opens in a new tab
    • Renew this link opens in a new tab
    • Advertise this link opens in a new tab
    • Content Licensing this link opens in a new tab
    • Affiliate Program
    • Free Travel Info this link opens in a new tab
    • Special Promotions this link opens in a new tab
    • Sweepstakes this link opens in a new tab
    • Video
    • Home Advisor this link opens in a new tab
    • Accolades this link opens in a new tab

    Connect

    Subscribe to Our Newsletter
    Sign Up
    MeredithMidwest Living is part of the Meredith Home Group. © Copyright 2022 Meredith Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policythis link opens in a new tab Terms of Servicethis link opens in a new tab Ad Choicesthis link opens in a new tab California Do Not Sellthis link opens a modal window Web Accessibilitythis link opens in a new tab
    © Copyright Midwest Living. All rights reserved. Printed from https://www.midwestliving.com

    Sign in

    View image

    Easy Container Water Gardens
    this link is to an external site that may or may not meet accessibility guidelines.