As we embark on May, I can’t help but think about all the annual Mother’s Day potted arrangements I’ve made over the years.
As many gardeners will know, being the only family member with a green thumb and a degree to back it up means you’re first in line when it comes to beautifying mom and dad’s garden, not that I mind (*wink *). It’s easy to make and has become my traditional Mother’s Day gift.
In addition to fun, she likes bold, vibrant colors in her pots, with large flowers, ornate foliage, and unique plant specimens for people to enjoy. This gives me a lot to work with and a lot of room to be creative.
When planting annual pots, the three main factors to consider are simple: what plants will be my exciting, filler, and spillover plants.
Your thrillers will be the tallest, draw attention to the arrangement and catch the attention of passersby. There can be many plants, but commonly used ones include the flowering canna lily, spiky dracaena, feathery ornamental grasses, various leafy palms, huge elephant ears, vibrant cordilina, and spiky sage. Towering above the other plants in your arrangement, these plants add depth and structure to your arrangement, as well as many different leaf and flower shapes with different textures.
Arrangement fillers will typically include “mound-type” plants seen in many store-bought annual pots. The most common among them are the colorful flowering plants petunia, verbena, lobelia, calibrachoa, nemesia, alyssum and diascia. Although their function is to “comply,” they are an essential element of the agreement. These plants can introduce various colors, textures, depths, pollinators, scents and tones.
Spillers, as their name suggests, drape and trail over the edge of pots, expanding the overall surface area of the arrangement. Its purpose is to give viewers more to watch. These include a vibrant sweet potato vine, silver dichondra, flowering wave petunia or climbing verbena, or even simpler plants such as Boston or English Ivy.
When arranging, following “the rule of probabilities” will be your ally in making arrangements appear natural and unforced, since evenly spaced, evenly spaced plants are rarely found organically in nature. Using this guide, you can plan to include 1 to 3 thrillers, 5 to 7 fillers, and 3 to 5 spills, depending on the size of your pot, increasing or decreasing the numbers as necessary.
As for my mom’s pots… We’ll go with our suspense coleus, geranium and wave petunia fillers, and sweet potato vine spillers that we like. Remember, flowers are not the only plants that can add color. Tons of beautiful foliage plants accomplish that too. Your annual planters will be vibrant and eye-catching for the next year.
If you’re eager to see a garden that showcases small spaces and container plantings, mark your calendar for the Johnson County Extension Master Gardener Garden Tour on May 17 and 18. This exciting event will reward you with a variety of beautiful educational gardens to explore. providing inspiration and knowledge. More information about the tour is at johnson.ksu.edu or 913-715-7000.
Anthony Reardon is a horticulture agent with Research and Extension at Kansas State University. Need help? Contact the Johnson County Extension Garden Hotline at 913-715-7050 or email garden.help@jocogov.org.