Sun and Shade Container Garden Ideas You’ll Love
Get inspired to create a fabulous sun and shade container garden with these gorgeous inspirational gardens. And get a master list to know what plants are best to pair together!
If you have ever wanted to create a colorful container garden but wasn’t sure where to start – this is the post for you! I’ve found it’s really simple to create lots of fun gardens using the Thriller, Filler, Spiller method. I’ve talked about this container garden method before in this post HERE. But I wanted to expand upon it and give you more ideas. So today, I’m featuring lots of sun and shade container garden ideas. And I created a list full of the best garden plants you’ll love!
First up, let’s look at some shade container gardens!
Container Garden for Shaded Areas
Love this beautiful combination! This garden has ‘Strawberry Sundae’ twinspurs (Diascia hybrid) and ‘Penny Lavender Shades’ violas combined with ‘Red Russian’ kale. Together they’re graceful and pretty, but also so eye-catching. Another major plus, they’ll tolerate plenty of shade.
How about this gorgeous container garden? It’s a mix of colorful of white begonias, impatiens, lilac and hedera helix and will bloom all summer long—even in full shade.
To get this look it only takes four plants! Those ‘Celebration’ and ‘Florida Sweetheart’ caladiums pop! Clusters of white wishbone flowers fill the empty spaces between the caladium stems and also conceal the actual container. The final touch is the creeping Jenny spilling over the sides. Position this planter in the shade and water regularly for a gorgeous, so-easy-to-maintain container garden display.
Sometimes combining a group of planters can really up the container garden look. The largest pot has a densely planted collection of snapdragon, dianthus, dusty miller and sedum. And to compliment, two smaller pots are placed beside with petunias and more sedum.
I can’t wait to try this look out on my own front porch!
Lots of green and even more green! Caladium, holly fern, heuchera, lamium, ivy, and light pink periwinkle come together in this eye-catching window box. This box emerges in a subtle sea of layers, each adding depth and color to the other. And it brightens this once empty shady space into a lovely display!
Now let’s look at some container gardens that are perfect for the sunniest places around your home.
Container Garden for Sunny Areas
Great container gardens can also appeal to your senses too and not just your eyes. Here, a hybrid rose and thyme offer scents just as good as their looks. This is the perfect full sun combination. One I’m actually considering for my own backyard. 🙂
Start with a young lemon grass plant positioned in the center of the pot. Then add the flowering plumbago around that. On the outermost edges, fill in the gaps with basil and rosemary, alternating the two if you wish or placing them on opposite sides of the container. Clip (and use!) the basil frequently. This will help it grow and also keep it from overtaking the rest of the display.
What do you think of these overflowing blooms? Pink petunias, super-delicate baby’s tears, and rounded clusters of rose-pink dianthus make this lovely combo. For this arrangement, the focus is entirely on the flowers. In fact, you can’t even find the container!
This type of container would be perfect for a garden wall or even a fence. Such a great way to bring color to something in your yard that’s rather plain.
This high-drama, low-maintenance container spotlights SunPatiens, but leaves room for a foxtail asparagus fern and a 6-inch pot of ‘Neon’ pothos. Super simple but still so beautiful!
So now that you’ve seen a ton of inspiration for some gorgeous container gardens, all that’s left is for you to create some of your own!
I put together a list of the best plants to use when practicing the thriller, filler, spiller method. PIN or print it and take it along with you to your local garden center.
