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As the 250th anniversary of America approaches, this year’s Independence Day is extra special. One way to show your patriotism and love of country is with a vibrant, red, white, and blue porch display made with thoughtful combinations of potted plants.
Container gardening is ideal for creating a special moment because it’s an easy way to customize a display and can be used for a big impact in small spaces. Your choices don’t have to be overly themed, just choose attractive flower and foliage plants with different heights and textures with an elegant red, white, and blue palette. (If you want to get really festive, you can add some American-made flags from Amazon to your pots!)
Here are some ideas to get you started.
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Nature's Clicks / Shutterstock
Chaykoi / Shutterstock
Here’s a great combo to recreate the classic colors of the flag with sun-loving flowers. Red geraniums are easy to grow and love the heat of summer. Place these in the center of the pot and surround them with white alyssum, a carpet of scented and tiny bright white flowers. For blue, let blue cascade lobelia spill over the edge of the pot.
All of these flowers either prefer or will tolerate full sun and need soil that drains well. Be sure to deadhead your geranium as flowers fade to encourage ongoing bright blooms.
Laura Walters / Future
Yasuo Iwami / Getty Images
Chaykoi / Shutterstock
If you want to recreate the red, white, and blue of the flag but don’t have full sun, this combination is for you. Replace geranium with red dragon wing begonia, which has attractive foliage and graceful, arching red flowers.
Fill in the space around the begonia with white wishbone flower, a heavy bloomer all summer. Finally, add trailing blue lobelia, which can grow in either sun or shade. Make sure this container has rich soil that drains well, and keep it consistently moist throughout the summer.
Kanokwalee Pusitanun / Getty Images
Getty Images
Shutterstock
If an informal cottage garden is your style, try this mix for a soft, patriotic pot. White larkspur has feathery sprays of delicate white flowers that will rise above your red and blue options. You can find seeds for Galilee white larkspur from Territorial Seed Company.
A red verbena provides tight clusters of bright red blooms to fill in around the larkspur. Obsession red verbena seeds can be found at Park Seeds.
Petunias make soft spillers for the edges of a cottage pot. Try ‘Surfinia’ blue petunias, which cascade nicely and do not need to be deadheaded. Give this blend a pot with well-draining soil and a spot in full sun.
Anna Nikulnikova / Getty Images
Getty Images
Iva Vagnerova / Getty Images
For a more modern garden style, look for geometric shapes and contrasting textures. Start with a clump of spiky blue fescue grass. Fill in around it with a coleus in a striking shade of red. Finally, add a white variety of million bells, which will trail over the side and bloom in flowers that look like mini petunias.
The best lighting for this combination is partial shade. The soil should be rich and moist, although it also needs to drain well.
Daniel Ripplinger / DansPhotoArt / Getty Images
David Kozlowski / Getty Images
Gabe Ginsberg / Getty Images
If you want to be patriotic but also support your local wildlife and attract pollinators to the garden, this combination is for you. Black and blue salvia, also known as anise sage, has deep cobalt-blue flowers that pollinators love. It will grow large and provide a good focal point for a big container.
Add pentas around the salvia to add nectar-rich white flowers that are magnets for bees and butterflies. Finally, red lantana adds a vibrant spiller element that pollinators love. Each of these plants thrives and flowers best in full sun. They are hot-weather flowers that will give you a good show all summer with regular watering and well-draining soil.
(Image credit: Ali Majdfar / Getty Images)
It’s easier to find red and white flowers than blue, so another option is to create masses of red or white flowers in bright blue pots. Picture two cobalt-blue glazed containers, one full of white petunias and the other with red petunias. (You can find large cobalt blue ceramic planters from Home Depot.)
Or, mix red and white flowers together in a blue pot. Some other red and white options include salvia for sun or partial shade, impatiens for shade, or cosmos for sun and for a flower easy to grow from seed.
(Image credit: mauinow1 / Getty Images)
For a hanging basket, choose patriotic flowers that trail and that you can mix together in one or two containers. Million bells or wave petunias are good choices, and come in red, white, and blue varieties. You can’t go wrong with trailing lobelia for a touch of bright blue. These are best for full sun spots.
For some shade, try creeping snapdragon, which comes in shades of blue and white, likewise wishbone flower. For the red element, use dragon wing begonia, red impatiens, or trailing fuchsia.
A living decoration that brightens up your porch, home, and garden is a great way to celebrate this very special Fourth of July. Unlike paper bunting, your display has the potential to last all summer. Just be sure to combine plants with the same growing conditions in one pot for the best results.
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Container gardening is ideal for creating a special moment because it’s an easy way to customize a display and can be used for a big impact in small spaces. Your choices don’t have to be overly themed, just choose attractive flower and foliage plants with different heights and textures with an elegant red, white, and blue palette. (If you want to get really festive, you can add some American-made flags from Amazon to your pots!)
Here are some ideas to get you started.
1. Full Sun Star-Spangled Banner
Shutterstock
Nature's Clicks / Shutterstock
Chaykoi / Shutterstock
Here’s a great combo to recreate the classic colors of the flag with sun-loving flowers. Red geraniums are easy to grow and love the heat of summer. Place these in the center of the pot and surround them with white alyssum, a carpet of scented and tiny bright white flowers. For blue, let blue cascade lobelia spill over the edge of the pot.
All of these flowers either prefer or will tolerate full sun and need soil that drains well. Be sure to deadhead your geranium as flowers fade to encourage ongoing bright blooms.
2. Shady American Flag
Laura Walters / Future
Yasuo Iwami / Getty Images
Chaykoi / Shutterstock
If you want to recreate the red, white, and blue of the flag but don’t have full sun, this combination is for you. Replace geranium with red dragon wing begonia, which has attractive foliage and graceful, arching red flowers.
Fill in the space around the begonia with white wishbone flower, a heavy bloomer all summer. Finally, add trailing blue lobelia, which can grow in either sun or shade. Make sure this container has rich soil that drains well, and keep it consistently moist throughout the summer.
3. Classic Cottage Garden Pot
Kanokwalee Pusitanun / Getty Images
Getty Images
Shutterstock
If an informal cottage garden is your style, try this mix for a soft, patriotic pot. White larkspur has feathery sprays of delicate white flowers that will rise above your red and blue options. You can find seeds for Galilee white larkspur from Territorial Seed Company.
A red verbena provides tight clusters of bright red blooms to fill in around the larkspur. Obsession red verbena seeds can be found at Park Seeds.
Petunias make soft spillers for the edges of a cottage pot. Try ‘Surfinia’ blue petunias, which cascade nicely and do not need to be deadheaded. Give this blend a pot with well-draining soil and a spot in full sun.
4. Contemporary Red, White, & Blue
Anna Nikulnikova / Getty Images
Getty Images
Iva Vagnerova / Getty Images
For a more modern garden style, look for geometric shapes and contrasting textures. Start with a clump of spiky blue fescue grass. Fill in around it with a coleus in a striking shade of red. Finally, add a white variety of million bells, which will trail over the side and bloom in flowers that look like mini petunias.
The best lighting for this combination is partial shade. The soil should be rich and moist, although it also needs to drain well.
5. Patriotic Pollinators
Daniel Ripplinger / DansPhotoArt / Getty Images
David Kozlowski / Getty Images
Gabe Ginsberg / Getty Images
If you want to be patriotic but also support your local wildlife and attract pollinators to the garden, this combination is for you. Black and blue salvia, also known as anise sage, has deep cobalt-blue flowers that pollinators love. It will grow large and provide a good focal point for a big container.
Add pentas around the salvia to add nectar-rich white flowers that are magnets for bees and butterflies. Finally, red lantana adds a vibrant spiller element that pollinators love. Each of these plants thrives and flowers best in full sun. They are hot-weather flowers that will give you a good show all summer with regular watering and well-draining soil.
6. Monochrome in Blue Containers
(Image credit: Ali Majdfar / Getty Images)
It’s easier to find red and white flowers than blue, so another option is to create masses of red or white flowers in bright blue pots. Picture two cobalt-blue glazed containers, one full of white petunias and the other with red petunias. (You can find large cobalt blue ceramic planters from Home Depot.)
Or, mix red and white flowers together in a blue pot. Some other red and white options include salvia for sun or partial shade, impatiens for shade, or cosmos for sun and for a flower easy to grow from seed.
7. Colorful Hanging Basket
(Image credit: mauinow1 / Getty Images)
For a hanging basket, choose patriotic flowers that trail and that you can mix together in one or two containers. Million bells or wave petunias are good choices, and come in red, white, and blue varieties. You can’t go wrong with trailing lobelia for a touch of bright blue. These are best for full sun spots.
For some shade, try creeping snapdragon, which comes in shades of blue and white, likewise wishbone flower. For the red element, use dragon wing begonia, red impatiens, or trailing fuchsia.
A living decoration that brightens up your porch, home, and garden is a great way to celebrate this very special Fourth of July. Unlike paper bunting, your display has the potential to last all summer. Just be sure to combine plants with the same growing conditions in one pot for the best results.
Continue reading...