The first thing to consider when you start designing your container is whether it will be placed in sun or shade. Selecting the correct plants for your location will ensure the success of your container.

Color, Color, Color!

After determining your light requirements, think about the colors you'd like to use. There are a number of different ways to combine colors in a combination planter.

• Mono-color: A range of shades of a single color. Be sure to use a pot that is either a neutral color or coordinates with your color scheme.
• Similar colors: Yellow-orange, orange-red, yellow-orange-red, violet-red, blue-green, and blue-violet.
• Complimentary colors: Red and green, orange and blue, and yellow and violet. Complimentary colors create a ton of contrast and cause both colors to pop.

Foliage = Texture

The next step to building your perfect container is incorporating foliage. This will bring another element of color and texture to your container.

• Dark foliage is perfect for highlighting light colored flowers.
• Silver foliage can harmonize with many flower colors like pink and lavender.
• Chartreuse blends well with hot colors like red, orange and yellow to create a tropical feel or it can contrast against dark colors like burgundy.

Thriller/Filler/Spiller

The final step in container building is selecting and arranging plants for the greatest structural impact. An easy way to do this is to select Thrillers, Fillers, and Spillers.

• Thrillers are plants with height that add drama and a vertical element to the combinations. Thrillers can be flowering or foliage plants. Some examples of thrillers are coleus, tall ornamental grasses, butterfly argyranthemum, gaura and angelonia.
• Fillers are essential for making your container look full in the middle. They tend to be rounded or mounded plants and are generally placed in front of or around the thriller. Some examples of fillers include Diamond Frost Euphorbia, lantana, diascia, shorter coleus, and New Guinea Impatiens.
• Spillers are trailing plants that hang over the edge of the container. They should be placed close to the edge of the pot. Some examples of spillers include calibrachoa, sweet potato vine, verbena, and creeping jenny.

Try putting these tips to use when you create your next container! But remember, there are many ways to combine plants and you should always feel free to play!

Happy planting!

Ella