Thrill, Fill and Spill Your Way to Container Garden Success

Container gardening continues to surge in popularity across the United States—and a simple three-plant formula makes it easy to get started.

It’s not hard to see why container gardening has taken off:

• It’s easy: Good soil is all but guaranteed, weeding is rarely required, and containers can be positioned in exactly the right sun conditions, making it easy to grow beautiful, healthy plants. You can even avoid all of the bending and digging of traditional gardening—a real advantage for anyone with painful or uncooperative joints!
• It’s space-saving: You don’t need a big yard or prepared flowerbeds, making container gardening ideal for anyone.
• It’s gorgeous: Containers are one of the easiest ways to make your space beautiful and welcoming!

But getting started can be overwhelming. How do you select the plants you need?

Fortunately, there’s a tried and true formula: Thrill, Fill, Spill.

Start with medium to large containers, making sure they have drainage holes at the bottom. Fill them with soil specifically designed for containers.

Then pick three types of plants for each container:

• A thriller: This is the star of the show—a tall, dramatic plant that will serve as the centerpiece of your composition.
• A filler: A fuller, leafier plant of medium height that will fill out the container.
• A spiller: A low-growing plant that will grow off the side of your container, cascading down.

Thriller: Elephant ears
Colocasia, Alocasia, and Xanthosoma

Filler: SunPatiens
Impatiens x hybrida ‘SunPatiens’ series

Spiller: Creeping jenny
Lysimachia nummularia

(Pro tip: if you only have small containers, consider grouping multiple pots or planters—one with a thriller, one with a filler, one with a spiller.)

Now you simply need to pick a plant from each category! We’ve pulled together a list of annuals that do well at the Garden to get you started. Many of these plants will be available at the Spring Plant Sale, so you can shop for them there!

Make sure all of the plants you select for a single container share the same light and water requirements. Beyond that, it’s up to you! This is a great chance to get creative with color and texture. Consider the kind of look you’re going for—modern and sculptural? Old-fashioned and cottage-core? Select plants that fit your vibe. Then have fun!

Here are some combinations to consider for full-sun locations:

A Color Riot

• Thriller: Tall-growing angelonias such as the Angelface series (Angelonia hybrid)
• Filler: Short-growing zinnias (Zinnia elegans)
• Spiller: Purslane (Portulaca oleracea, P. umbraticola, or hybrids)

Red, White and Blue

• Thriller: New Look Red Celosia (Celosia plumosa ‘New Look Red’)
• Filler: Blue Plumbago (Plumbago auriculata)
• Spiller: Cora® Cascade Polka Dot Vinca (Catharanthus roseus Cora® Cascade ‘Polka Dot’)

Perfect in Purple

• Thriller: Purple fountain grass (Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’)
• Filler: Coleus ‘Burgundy Sun’ (Coleus scutellarioides ‘Burgundy Sun’)
• Spiller: Purple sweet potato vine (Ipomoea batatas)

These are only a starting point. Almost any plant you can grow in the ground can be grown in a container, assuming the container is big enough!

Consider these options:

• Native perennials like lantana and coreopsis in a portable pollinator garden.
• Herbs and vegetables such as basil and ornamental peppers for a veggie garden in a pot.
• Succulents and cacti such as hardy ice plant and blue spruce sedum for a touch of desert in your yard.
• A Japanese garden of your own with mondo grass and Asian jasmine surrounding a dwarf Japanese maple.

Make sure you establish a regular watering schedule for your container garden—containers dry out fast in Texas heat! Add a slow-release fertilizer to the soil when you plant, or fertilize every few weeks during the growing season to keep your plants looking their best.

Then sit back and enjoy your creation! And when you post photos of your new container garden, make sure to tag us at #fortworthbotanicgarden. We can’t wait to see the results!

Annuals for North Texas Container Gardens

Thriller

• Purple fountaingrass (Pennisetum setaceum ‘Rubrum’)
• Tall-growing basil (Ocimum basilicum)
• Elephant ears (Colocasia, Alocasia, and Xanthosoma)
• Firebush (Hamelia patens)
• Copper plants (Acalypha wilkesiana)
• Mid-size zinnias (Zinnia elegans)
• Spikes (Dracaena indivisa)
• Cordyline (Cordyline australis ‘Red Star’)
• Tall-growing Angelonia (Angelface® series)
• Blue Plumbago (Plumbago auriculata)

Filler

• Low-growing zinnias (Zinnia elegans)
• Lantana (Lantana)
• SunPatiens impatiens hybrids (Impatiens x hybrida ‘SunPatiens’ series)
• Dragon wing begonia (Begonia x hybrida Dragon Wing)
• Ornamental peppers (Capsicum frutescens ‘NuMex Twilight’)
• Pentas (Pentas lanceolata)
• Cora Vinca (Catharanthus roseus)
• Baby’s breath euphorbias (Euphorbia hypericifolia)
• Angelonias (Angelonia angustifolia Serena Series™) – works best as a thriller or filler
• Dusty Miller (Senecio cineraria)
• Celosia (Celosia plumosa, Celosia cristata)

Spiller

• Cascading Cora Vinca (Catharanthus roseus)
• Creeping jenny (Lysimachia nummularia)
• Sweet potato vine (Ipomoea batatas)
• Silver falls dichondra (Dichondra argentea)
• Purslane (Portulaca oleracea, P. umbraticola, or hybrids)