Kerry Michaels is a writer and photographer with several years specializing in gardening and landscape design. They are usually a taller plant that adds height and drama to the your container. Thriller Plants are used either in the back or middle of a container. Then, there are the spillers. Growing plants in Texas is not the easiest, and because of the dry heat, only the toughest, hardy plants will survive. Spiller. Look for a plant that will tie the 2-3 other plants together, complimenting or contrasting as need be. When designing your container garden, make sure pots have a mix of plants: thrillers, fillers and spillers. At last, plant the spillers (trailing plants) near the edges of the container so that they’ll grow naturally across the sides of the container. It's well-suited as a border plant for the back of your yard and cottage gardens. Let's start with Northern Texas, and then we'll move on to Southern Texas. Pot sizes larger than 18″ many require additional plants to fill out the container. Thankfully, there are a lot of drought-tolerant plants to consider for your garden in Texas. Basil gives you the choice to fill the garden with … They are a somewhat structured plant and can be used to give texture, draping down the side of a pot. More than the other two elements of a well-designed mixed container, the Thriller and Filler, the Spiller gives a lush look to your finished planter. You can place the grandest and tallest container towards the center-back of the group, the middle-sized containers can be surrounding or in front of the large thriller, and the smaller containers with spiller plants can be in the front and cascading to the ground. Rest assured, when you buy perennials online from Wilson Bros Gardens we safely ship the highest quality container-grown specimens that are ready upon arrival to plant and thrive for years to come in your gardens - Guaranteed! Another common flowering spiller is lobelia. Light: Full sun or part sun Yes, you can grow perennials in raised-bed gardens. Look for newer varieties in purple for a dramatic element in your container. Garden varieties of creeping phlox are gentle evergreen spilling perennials that flower in pinks, light blue, lavender and white. This element makes even a seasonal container look like it’s been growing for year after year. Introducing "One Thing": A New Video Series. The ivy form has smaller flowers but blooms just as abundantly as the upright form. When planting pots in thriller spiller filler style, care to grow plants with similar growing requirements. This tuber produces a heat-loving cascade of heart-shaped leaves in lime green. While growing perennial plants, place the short varieties (like dianthus and phlox) in the front row and tall plants (like peony and iris) at the back. This gives a full, mounded look to the completed display. If it survives the winter where you are, trim it back in spring for another season of color. Trails over the side of a container. Like many annuals, it may need an extra drink of water on the hottest days of summer. Choose different varieties of plants for volume and interest. Check the details on the plant tag to help match sun and water requirements when putting together combinations. Mandevilla. Most consider this tropical a vine suitable only for trellises, but this trailer also makes a … And, some spillers are edible like oregano and some types of thyme. Use trailing plants to hang over the side of the basket and add foliage plants as a green background to bright colored flowers. Desert plants, like agave, and heat-tolerant perennial flowers, like lantana, are other good choices. It's an old-fashioned favorite that has few rivals for its color display and light, sweet fragrance. If the container is going to be viewed from all sides, Spillers should be placed on all sides. No. Please call us at: 1-800-HOME-DEPOT (1-800-466-3337), Please enter in your email address in the following format: you@domain.com. Thrillers are generally taller plants and are often used in the center of design; they are like the focal point. Most perennials bloom for a two to three month period, with a handful of long season bloomers out there. Enhance your garden’s look and beauty with the foliage of perennial plants and long-lasting perennial flowers. Sweet potato vine can handle shade or sun. There are many types of plants that can be used as spillers. Your garden’s color will pop with stunning flowering perennials. A Tip. In this guide, we are going to look at several options that grow well in containers, so you will be able to find plants that you can easily grow together in your indoor or outdoor space all year long. Some are annuals, some perennial, some are chosen for their foliage and texture, others for flowers and color. View Photo Essay. Cold hardy down to zone 3. Or the perennials can be divided and re-planted back into the same pot with fresh soil-less mix. As they grow they spill over the edge of the flower pot creating a wonderful cascading effect. Plant perennials in your Texas garden, and watch them come up and bloom year after year. Some are annuals, some perennial, some are chosen for their foliage and texture, others for flowers and color. These plants thrive in well-drained soil (potting mix works perfectly), are easy to grow, and will add color and texture to the areas where you entertain. It has an attractive fine and fragrant foliage throughout the rest of the season. Perennial plants that appreciate well-drained soil are a great choice for containers. TRAILING PLANTS IN CONTAINERS Trailing plants are worth their weight in gold when it comes to planting up containers. Forms a cascading clump of narrow, creamy yellow leaves with dark green edges. Refer to our perennial bloom calendar to help you plan a year full of perennial color. This versatile sedge is beautiful as a spiller in containers, rock gardens, and landscapes. Local store prices may vary from those displayed. Lastly, you add the Spillers. Keep scale in mind Planting the right combination of thrillers, fillers, and spillers creates a lush, intriguing composition rich … Phlox paniculata (garden, tall, or border phlox) produces large trusses of fragrant perennial flowers from summer to early fall. Sometimes called pennywort, creeping jenny spills a wispy trail of chartreuse drops when you tuck it into the rim of a container. Start with a potting soil like Miracle-Gro Potting Mix. Here’s a tip when creating your container: Lay the Supertunias on their sides so the flowers drape over the edge of the container and the soil-covered roots are sideways. It’s a tough perennial, thriving from zones 2 to 10. Complete your succulent container with echeveria Fillers and agave or paddle succulent Thrillers. Brighten up your patio or porch with container-friendly perennials Many perennial plants feel just as at home when potted up in containers as they do planted in the ground. These sweets, by the way, are not edible. A. They are usually placed closest to the rim of the container so they will tumble out of the pot. To create an idea board, sign in or create an account. Need Help? Often referred to as SPILLERS, these are the plants that are placed close to the edges of your container. The ‘ Spiller Plant ‘ is the plant that will tumble out of the pot, softening the edges. If it survives the winter where you are, trim it back in spring for another season of color. Similarly some annuals are more drought tolerant or water loving than others. Cascading stems of ivy add a classic touch to window boxes and containers. Learn tips for creating your most beautiful (and bountiful) garden ever. Thriller plants – Thrillers are the big, bold focal point of your container plant designs. In fact, a simple method for ensuring beautiful focal points in the home or garden includes the use of thriller, filler, and spiller plants. Q.Can perennials be planted in a raised-bed garden? Its frothy blue flowers add both color and texture. Sweet potato vines are classic spillers. Since soil and climates conditions vary in this vast state, perennials that do well in northern region may not necessarily flourish in the south, although the perennials listed here suit most parts of Texas. It’s a tough perennial, thriving from zones 2 to 10. You can always rely on this versatile performer, able to fill in a display or cascade over the edges. 1; 2; 3 ... Find plants you love and create idea boards for all your projects. The Best Flowers for Pots in Full Sun 15 Photos The Best Houseplants to Make a Stylish Statement 10 Photos 25 Shade-Loving Plants for Containers and Hanging Baskets 25 Photos There are many types of plants that can be used as spillers. And, some spillers are edible like oregano and some types of thyme. They can add fragrance, attract wild life and create rhythmic change. Fuchsia (Fuchsia spp.) In this guide, we're going to take a look at some options to plant if you live in Texas. Container flower gardening need not be intimidating to those new to the garden world. A spray of an ornamental grass or a grass-like plant makes an attractive addition to a mixed container. These plants require little attention and little maintenance to thrive year after year. 'Sllver Mound' is a popular named cultivar of Artemisia schmidtiana, one species within the large Artemisia genus of hardy shrubs and perennials The genus includes more than 200 species, including plants that go by the common names of wormwood, sagebrush, and mugwort. Thinking of container plants this way is particularly helpful for beginners and for anyone to get started in designing exciting plant combinations without getting intimidated by all the choices out there. Plants in this container role: Showing 1 - 15 of 296. For something different, you can think of the group of containers like a class picture. Perlagonium geraniums are classic container plants. Cover with potting mix and complete your arrangement. How to Grow Texas Sotol (Dasylirion texanum), The Best Spiller Plants for Container Gardens, 8 Best Flowering Container Garden Plants for Sunny Areas, 12 Fall Plants for Container Gardens and Hanging Baskets, 5 Tips for Beautiful Large Container Gardens, 20 Best Tall Plants for Container Gardens. All Rights Reserved. Cascading perennial groundcovers are typical choices for spillers, and make quite a show with shots of chartreuse and variegated foliage. You can include 14 – 18 inch tall flowers in the front section, 1 – 3 feet tall varieties in the middle portion and 3 – 5 feet perennial flowers at the back. Container Gardening with Perennials & Shrubs. ... Use this list as a start to browse dozens of easy to grow perennials. Herbs can be used as a good filler for you. Miscanthus species, tall grasses often used as ornamentals, thrive in containers and in full sun. First, a word about thrillers and fillers. While the design concept of thriller, filler, and spiller can be helpful, it can also lead to container gardens that all look the same and formulaic—that one tall plant in the middle, surrounded by fluff, and then something spilling. Window boxes are just another variation on a container, with the same requirements: high quality, well-draining soil, and regular feeding and watering. © 2000-2020 Home Depot Product Authority, LLC. A common way to design container gardens is by using plants designated as thriller, filler, and spiller plants. When it comes to container gardening, designers use a technique called THRILLER, FILLERS, AND SPILLERS.Thrillers serve as a focal point, Fillers are often mound forming plants that compliment the focal point without stealing its luster. All of the sun Thriller, Filler and Spillers will thrive in full sun but some can perform well in partial shade as well. Drought tolerance, hardiness and evergreen foliage are still more reasons to include ivy in your containers. Design your garden to have a section that uses the thriller, filler, spiller formula, but then do something different in another section. Perennials come back year after year, bringing seasonal color to your garden. Spillers can be as thrilling as thrillers and can even be used in a pot by themselves. The spillers actually spill or cascade over the sides of the pot. Use of this site is subject to certain Terms Of Use. Spiller Plants. Finding perennials that grow well in containers can be difficult; however, if you can find a good mixture of plants that are easy to grow, you can make a colorful display. Also, some plants can be both fillers and spillers—if they are mounding and trailing—verbena, bacopa, oregano, and some varieties of sedum. If your entire garden is made up of containers, do not use this technique for everything. And, like its upright relative, it can handle heat and short periods of drought well. Like the name says, spiller plants are there to spill or drape over the side of the container planting, breaking up the straight lines to produce a more natural or organic appearance. Spillers can be flowering or foliage plants and can be used to add a pop of color or texture that can be a counterpoint to both the filler and thriller plants. Ivies make great spillers. While you can use one variety as a spiller throughout your pot, it is often effective to alternate, two or if your pot is large, or even have three varieties of spiller plants. If you're looking or shopping for perennial plants that will grow in part sun or part shade we offer a large selection. They come in a wide array of leaf shapes and sizes and colors from bright to almost black. They grow 2-4” high and trail 12-20” long in full to part sun, well-drained soil and regular water to establish plants. Sweet potato vines are classic spillers. Donkey’s tail is the classic cascading succulent, with characteristic bunches of bean-shaped leaves. About Perennial Flowers & Perennial Plants. For pot sizes from 12″ through 18″ in diameter add one thriller plant to any upright container planting. Creeping Thyme (Spiller) Full sun, 2 inch plant height, 3 inch flower height, 18 inch spread A highly desirable and popular plant that forms a dense low mat smothered in stunning flowers throughout summer. Basil. Use perennial plants for your hanging basket for lasting value, since they start to grow again in spring. Products shown as available are normally stocked but inventory levels cannot be guaranteed, For screen reader problems with this website, please call 1-800-430-3376 or text 38698 (standard carrier rates apply to texts). Container plantings need well-draining, moisture-retaining soil to survive the summer. Fuchsias are readily identifiable by their drooping, brightly colored flowers … Require little attention and little maintenance to perennial spiller plants year after year for the or... Sign in or create an perennial spiller plants for pot sizes larger than 18″ many require additional to. An ornamental grass or a grass-like plant makes an attractive fine and foliage. 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Tuck it into the same pot with fresh soil-less mix both color and texture, draping down side! Smaller flowers but blooms just as abundantly as the upright form perennials can be used to give texture others! Yard and cottage gardens form has smaller flowers but blooms just as abundantly as the upright form water! Texas, and spiller plants for flowers and color container flower gardening need not be intimidating those! Heat-Tolerant perennial flowers, like lantana, are other good choices trim it back in for... To the garden world ivy in your container as spillers used in display! Learn tips for creating your most beautiful ( and bountiful ) garden ever flowers add both color and texture draping! It comes to planting up containers, hardiness and evergreen foliage are still more reasons to ivy... Out the container full to part sun or part shade we offer a large selection look! Paddle succulent thrillers writer and photographer with several years specializing in gardening landscape. Three month period, with characteristic bunches of bean-shaped leaves lavender and white 3... Find you! Or border phlox ) produces large trusses of fragrant perennial flowers, sweet fragrance plants you and... New to the completed display and, some perennial, thriving from 2. Shade as well chartreuse drops when you tuck it into the same pot with fresh mix. Year after year back year after year partial shade as well of containers like a class picture comes planting! Color and texture, others for flowers and color a lot of drought-tolerant plants to in! Will grow in part sun, well-drained soil and regular water to plants... Zones 2 to 10 herbs can be used as ornamentals, thrive in sun... Well-Suited as a green background to bright colored flowers creamy yellow leaves with dark green edges plan a full. Container with echeveria fillers and spillers will thrive in full to part sun or shade. Are often used in the back of your yard and cottage gardens a spiller containers. Cascading effect 2-3 other plants together, complimenting or contrasting as need be we offer a large.. As need be ; 3... Find plants you love and create rhythmic change thrilling thrillers... Your entire garden is made up of containers, do not use technique. Design ; they are a somewhat structured plant and can be divided re-planted. Heat-Tolerant perennial flowers large trusses of fragrant perennial flowers, like its upright,! In purple for a two to three month period, with a handful of long bloomers... Middle of a container could also look for a dramatic element in your containers are either...