Podcast: Let's Argue About Plants

Episode 5: Favorite Container Plants

May 8, 2017

Which varieties make the best pot thrillers, fillers, and spillers

Sure, you could plant all of your containers with mundane geraniums and boring petunias—but why? This episode will give you several ideas for more thrilling options like a red banana that gets 6 feet tall in one summer, evergreens that can live for years in the same pot, and technicolor coleus cultivars. With our experts recommendations you’ll never have to settle for run-of-the-mill container gardens again.

Expert: Barbara Libner, container garden designer for Ravenna Gardens in Seattle, Washington.
 

Steve has never met a coleus he didn’t like, including the colorfully named, ‘Big Red Judy’ (Solenostemon scutellarioides 'Big Red Judy').

Although accused of having a lot of “boring” plants on her list, Danielle does love the always impressive 'Red Abyssinian' banana (Ensete maurelii 'Red Abyssinian').

One plant that both of our hosts can agree makes a great textural container companion is Mexican feather grass (Nassella tenuissima).

The expert guest on this episode, Barbara Libner often bases her designs around an evergreen like upright yew (Cephalotaxus harringtonia 'Fastigiata'). 

Featured Plants:

  • ‘Winter Gem’ boxwood (Buxus sinica var. insularis) Note: also sold as Buxus microphylla var. japonica ‘Winter Gem’ or Buxus microphylla var. koreana ‘Winter Gem.’
  • Alternanthera cvs.
  • Dragon Wing™ begonias (Begonia cvs.)
  • Coleus (Plectranthus scutellarioides syn. Solenostemon scutellarioides)
  • ‘Copper Glow’ oxalis (Oxalis vulcanicola ‘Copper Glow’)
  • Parsley
  • Red Abyssinian banana (Ensete ventricosum 'Maurelii')
  • ‘Pretoria’ canna (Canna ‘Pretoria’)
  • Mexican feather grass (Nasella tenuissima)
  • Fatsia japonica ‘Spider Web’
  • Dwarf hinoki cypress (Chamacyparis  obstusa ‘Rainbow’, ‘Filicoides’, and ‘Filicioides Aurea’)
  • Yews (Taxus spp. and cvs.)
  • ‘Dwarf Bright Gold’ yew (Taxus cuspidata ‘Dwarf Bright Gold’)
  • ‘Densiformis’ yew (Taxus × media 'Densiformis')
  • African boxwood (Myrsine africana ‘Scarlett Marglin’)
  • Euonymus
  • Euonymus japonicus ‘Microphyllus’ and ‘Green Spire’
  • Euonymus fortunei ‘Emerald Gaiety’
  • Euonymus japonicus ‘Paloma Blanca’
  • Carex comans ‘Frosted Curls’
  • ‘Silver Posie’ thyme (Thymus vulgaris ‘Silver Posie’)
  • Hebes (Hebe spp. and cvs.)
  • Hebe ‘Pinocchio’
  • Heuchera
  • ‘Soft Caress’ mahonia (Mahonia eurybracteata ‘Soft Caress’)
  • Himalayan maidenhair fern (Adiantum venustum)
  • Selaginella ‘Aurea’

 

 

 

Fine Gardening Recommended Products

A.M. Leonard Deluxe Soil Knife & Leather Sheath Combo

Fine Gardening receives a commission for items purchased through links on this site, including Amazon Associates and other affiliate advertising programs.

MULTITASKING DUAL EDGES: a deep serrated edge and a tapered slicing edge ideal for tough or delicate cuts. DURABLE 6-inch stainless steel blade withstands 300 lbs of pressure. TWINE CUTTING NOTCH, DEPTH GAUGE MARKINGS & spear point - no need to switch tools when using this garden knife. LEATHER SHEATH: heavy duty, protective, clip on sheath to keep your knife convenient and secure. LIFETIME WARRANTY.
Buy at Amazon
X
View Comments

Comments

  1. user-7008554 05/13/2017

    It's no longer Solenostemon. Taxonomists changed it to Plectranthus scutellarioides a few years ago.

Log in or create an account to post a comment.

Related Articles

The Latest

How-To
Keep Moth Orchids Happy and They’ll Bloom Year After Year

For many people, picking up a potted moth ­orchid (Phalaenopsis spp. and cvs., Zones 10–12) is like buying cut flowers; they don’t care for the plant once it stops blooming.…
Design
4 Luck® Red Stripes White Variegated Clover Adds a Little Luck to Your Pots

While many gardeners might label white clover as a weed, this fast-filling, variegated selection is cute as a button in containers. With a mix of 3- and 4-palmate leaves, you’ll…
Design
Garden Tour of a Sustainable Native Plant Oasis Bursting with Fall Color

When Jeff Lorenz and Kayla Fell purchased this property in the Philadelphia suburbs, they knew they had their work cut out for them. A front and back yard of mostly…

Video

View All Videos
Design

Touring an Eco-friendly, Shady Backyard Retreat

You must be careful when you enter the backyard of garden designer Jeff Epping—not because you’re likely to trip on something, but because you might be dive-bombed by a pair…
Design

4 Midsummer Favorites From a Plant Breeder's Garden
Design

Garden Tour of a Sustainable Native Plant Oasis Bursting with Fall Color
Podcast: Let's Argue About Plants

Episode 170: High-Impact Native Plants with Uli Lorimer  
Podcast: Let's Argue About Plants

Episode 169: Great Foundation Plants