Multimedia

Today consumers are looking to find a creative way to design a functional and aesthetically pleasing finished product. They shop for just the right plant materials, containers and combinations to design an engaging outdoor living space. Color, space and function guide their choices, and beauty inspires their design.

Home owners can create outdoor settings with all the style and comfort of indoor living. By using containers, even the smallest patio, porch or deck can become a lush and colorful sun-drenched garden. A shady outdoor space can also be just as colorful as any sunny spot. There are wide ranges of spectacular container-friendly flowering plants for shade that will brighten up even the darkest, dreariest corners.

The secret to spectacular combinations is to think of them as living flower arrangements. Many gardeners prefer to use one variety as a focal point, and then create an overall design that has a mix of colors, foliage, textures and heights. Others like grouping plants with varying shades of a single hue. Since there are no set rules, you’re free to indulge your love of plants in new and exciting ways. Not just annual color or ferns go in containers today. Any combination utilizing these plants along with others of matched vigor will be combinations for success.

Perennials:
Many perennials today for sun, part-shade and shade are bred to perform in containers as well as the landscape. And best of all, you can grow them alongside spring and summer flowering annuals.

Foliage Plants:
With foliage plants at the forefront of hot gardening trends, it’s no surprise that gardeners are looking towards today’s much improved coleus varieties. They are larger, sun-loving and feature a mixture of brilliant colors and unusual textures.

Herbs:
Herbs add texture, color, fragrance and culinary features to containers and combinations. They are complimentary to annuals and perennials with similar growth habits.

Tropical Plants:
Big, bold and beautiful; tropical plants are all three. With flamboyant colors, distinctive shapes, and unique textures, these vibrant growers give gardeners a chance to create an exotic paradise in their backyard or on their balconies, decks and patios.

Flowering/Colorful Shrubs:
Some shrubs today in dwarf varieties grow like annuals and perennials. They add color, height and structure to containers and can be one of the best component plants.

Each person’s sense of what is beautiful is different, as is their sense of design which expresses their preferences and personality. The goal should be a well designed plan, attention to detail and quality product choices, which will ensure success. Remember, Mother Nature is the ultimate designer.