Planter Ideas

For Decks and Porches

• Locate molded planter boxes on a porch rail, along the edge of a deck or as more traditional windowboxes. Use the planters to present a celebration of color. A single color or flower can be used to unite and integrate the various containers. The colors you use may be a single, bold primary shade or a delicate pastel. Using a single color can tie together many types of flowers.

For the Drive

• Use planters to line a driveway, dressing up a utilitarian space and providing an inviting welcome home. Fill the planters with one type of flower in a range of colors -- for example, several varieties of multiflora petunias. These compact plants open numerous blooms at one time and include Celebrity and Primetime petunias.

Around Features

• Use brick or masonry constructed planter bases to encircle a large tree, mailbox or other feature. A wide lip will allow the planter to serve as a bench as well, making maintenance easier. To hide a mailbox post, choose flowers with height, such as a grouping of purple coneflower. To leave the feature unobscured, select a low-growing flower -- for example, a short-type of snapdragon such as Floral Carpet or Pixie.

In Place of Flowerbeds

• Construct a raised bed planter to replace a more traditional flowerbed around the perimeter of the house. Raised beds make gardening more accessible for those with limited movement or other medical restrictions. They also solve issues such as pooling water from downspouts or poor soil near the foundation. Planters may be filled with improved soil that will result in healthier plants. Consider filling them with a simple line of rose bushes for a rich display.

An Alternate Form

• Create a planter by massing a collection of old metal tubs, pots or other containers. The containers can sit directly on the ground, or gardeners can use masonry blocks or lumber to create a variety of levels. Each may contain a different plant or a mixture of flowers and colors. For a rustic appearance, plant a selection of herbs.

A Seasonal Theme

• Fill your planters with seasonal flowers, such as tulips in spring, daylilies in summer and fall mums. Homeowners can use hardy bulbs such as daffodils -- that emerge early and then die back -- to allow an annual to be seeded among the foliage and take over as the weather warms.