Late spring is the perfect time to brighten up your garden landscape with luscious colours! You can design ideal summer containers with annuals that your neighbours will appreciate as much as you.
The best method for creating a fabulous outdoor arrangement is using the thriller, filler, and spiller method, which combines vividly coloured plants, vining plants, and plants to fill out the gaps. With this guide, we’ll get you started with the right plants for your container gardens and how to plant them in a gorgeous arrangement.
The Thriller, Filler, and Spiller Method
Thrillers, fillers, and spillers are the three primary components of landscape container gardens. Thrillers are tall plants that stand out and act as your centrepiece. It’s the first plant you will typically notice, so you’ll want to pick one that is tall and eye-catching. Fillers are smaller, rich, and dense plants to fill the gaps around your garden container. Finally, spillers are trailing garden plants with long vines that spill over the container’s sides to finish the look. When combined, you will have a complete landscape container garden, whether your containers are hanging baskets, window boxes, or on the ground.
Choosing Your Plants
When choosing your plants, consider their light and water requirements. Combining a drought-tolerant plant with one that requires continuous hydration will result in some tricky maintenance! When choosing your plants, ensure you examine whether they have similar needs for survival to make your container easier to maintain in your landscape.
Finally, select plants that complement one another. For monochromatic summer containers, you can select various shades of a single hue or use an entire rainbow of colours. For a visually appealing combination, seek a range of shapes, colour tones, textures, and heights. You can create a colour echo in the landscape by using similar colours to your garden beds or make stunning paired planters for the deck or dock. The options are endless!
Kimberley Ferns, Canna Lilies, or Caladiums for your thriller plant will easily steal the spotlight of any arrangement.
Trailing petunias, Million Bells (Calibrachoa), Ivy, or Sweet Potato Vine will gracefully spill at the edge of the container, cascading down for an abundant, overgrown look.
Begonias, New Guinea Impatiens, and Geraniums are ideal for fillers because they generally stay short and come in various colours.
Gather Your Supplies
To prepare for planting your container, gather all your materials before you start making your beautiful garden planters. Planting will be more peaceful and enjoyable if you have everything on hand! You’ll need:
- New container that compliments your landscape
- Potting soil
- Fertilizer
- A trowel
- Gardening gloves
- Your new plants!
Placement of Container Garden
We recommend planting your thriller plants in the middle and your spiller plants near the edges of your container for a 360-degree view. If your container is against a wall, place thrillers at the back and spillers in front and over the sides. In both cases, your fillers can fill in the gaps!
Plant into a New Container
Begin by scooping some potting soil into the bottom of the container. Place the root ball of the largest plant about an inch below the top of the container. Then, put your plants inside the container to arrange them according to the Thriller, Filler, Spiller method.
Starting with the thriller plants, gently lift them out of their original container, squeezing the sides and separating the root ball from the edges. If your plant is rootbound, you can use a sharp spade to loosen up the edges of the root ball. As a reminder, avoid touching the center of the root ball, as it can damage the strongest roots.
Place your plant in the designated spot in the garden container and support it with a few handfuls of potting soil. Continue to add plants, working your way to the container’s edges and carefully packing them in. The soil level should be about one inch below the pot’s edge. After they’ve established, give them a good sip of water mixed with fertilizer every 2 weeks!
You’re officially ready to kick off a colourful summer! If you have any questions or need help with plant selection for your Muskoka container garden ideas, visit us at Bala & Port Carling Garden Centres.
