Flower pot combos

This weekend was a very productive one. We are project people. Don't go trying to change us.

Our kitchen and bathroom were being gutted, so I spent a lot of time avoiding the messy indoors, and getting some work done in the garden. I stick to perennials in my garden beds, but love to put together pots of annuals for the front steps and our new (almost finished) deck.

Coleus are always a favorite for pots, and they come in a wide variety of color combinations.  Here, I've centered the pot with purple fountain grass, then added a yellow rimmed red leaf coleus, and a ruffly purple and green coleus.  Yellow flowers kept catching my eye at the greenhouse, so I finished off the pot with some bright yellow accents-yellow lantana and some decorative yellow peppers. 

Big pots of perennials-coreopsis, blanket flower and cardinal flower-were a bargain, but I had already purchased enough new perennials for the year. Thankfully, I struck upon the idea that-DUH-I could use perennials in my pots. Sometimes the most obvious things........

'Thriller, filler, spiller' really is a good rule to follow when filling your pots. Big threadleaf coreopsis(tall, 'thriller')plants will look spectacular in these pots. I surrounded them with more coleus ('filler'), and a sweet potato vine ('spiller')-another favorite annual.

Experiement with different combinations this year, or add a new color to the mix. You'll be rewarded with lush pots full of color all summer long.