What 5 (probably container) plants would you recommend a clueless gardener start off with?

[Ktay]

Good morning! We have a small garden, officially NW-facing but gets lots of sun as we’re end of terrace so nothing to our left. We are absolutely clueless gardeners so it currently just has a couple of boring bushes in a small bed, like you’d find in a new build.

I’d love to introduce a bit of colour but start on a small scale ie add a few new things each year and get my head around maintaining those before adding anything else. We might be able to squeeze something else in the bed but I think containers are probably best bet. If you were in my position, what (up to five) low-maintenance plants would you start off with? And where’s a user-friendly place to look for advice on how to maintain them (ie position, frequency of watering, whether any pruning required and when...)?

Thanks very much in advance!

My most used pots are herbs : sage common thyme and winter savory. Mint too - lots of varieties and very forgiving.
All pretty easy but not that colourful. Also lavender. Although it's prone to hissy fits sometimes - my potted ones are currently not very happy but I suspect that's after 4 years in a pot and too wet / too dry weather.
When using pots remember to get some potting grit and sand and mix with the compost and a layer of grit at the bottom to keep well draining.

Good luck and here's to many pottering garden hours. X

Thank you! We inherited a lavender bush in our old house and it didn’t fare too well in our care but in a container I might find it easier to keep in check??

I love the idea of herbs, have been thinking in investing in some non-supermarket ones and trying to keep them alive but view them as separate to something colourful.

Thanks for the advice about setting up the pots too.

How do things like sweet peas fare in pots - I’ve probably missed the boat with those but maybe a future year? Bit ambitious?

I grow lots of things in containers, also in a NW position my top suggestions for impact are:

Hydrangeas, there are loads of varieties. They will lose their leaves in winter but are a real statement in summer and dint mind Percival shade.

Fatsia Japonica, they’re evergreen, broad leaved, need little maintenance and are evergreen.

Roses, a perfumed rose is a must, again load of varieties. Look at the David Austin web site for suggestions for growing in a planter.

Finally easy growing annuals such as Cosmos, Mimulus and Calendula brighten up the space and can be moved around when in pots.

The best place for advice is the RHS website. Better still join the RHS, you get free entry to gardens, web advice and a monthly magazine.

*Hydrangeas Don’t mind partial shade. No idea where Percival came from!!

Sweet peas can be grown in pots next year. They are thirsty and like a lot of nutrients. Best grown in a very large pot, 50 cms, if possible and in a rich compost. Watering needs to be daily, feeding once a week and the frequent removal of flowers and tendrils encourages the plant to last longer.
Good luck, it’s so exciting having a new garden.

I have two box trees that look great, no maintenance, think they would survive a nuclear holocaust. I've had them years. Look lovely with fairy lights on. I put a hydrangea in last year which looks awesome this year, really bushy and lush with big blue flowers. Lavenders are great and do well and are easy. I tried some lillies last year and they have come up again amazingly this year. The flowers dont last long though. Those are my pots that dont need re doing every year. I'm my planters that I do yearly, petunias do well and my begonias this year are amazing. I have geraniums in small pots. A hardy fuschia should do well in a really big planter and come back every year.
Can you tell I only have pots? .

I've got different coloured geraniums in large pots which have come back for a couple of years now, they are easy to look after. Deadhead through flowering then cut right back.

I also do spring bulbs in containers - daffodils, tulips, iris, crocus. I put them in in autumn. Also just started some wallflower seeds which will hopefully flower next spring.

This is fantastic, just what I was after. Thanks everyone.

Geraniums I just remember from getting out of hand in our old garden but obvs less of an issue in a pot.

Have one or two pots that you have bedding in at different times of year. You can have summer bedding like pelargoniums in it, and then in the autumn, plant up with winter pansies and some bulbs underneath for the spring.

Hydrangea again
Fuschia - again lots of varieties
If you can put a large pot against something to climb up, some clematis will thrive.

A Cordyline deep red and winter colour.
Along with Lavender, Rosemary makes a good shrub in a pot, and Sage, All 3 are shrubs as opposed to 'leaves' that die off in winter.
Add bulbs into the containers as well, they will help fill up the spaces until the shrubs become more mature. As well as spring bulbs you can get crocosmia for example for the late summer (Crocosmia Lucifer are gorgeous)

Agree with box and I bought a small Christmas tree in a tub from Asda last year. I've repotted it and that is doing well too.

I think pots are more trouble for an inexperienced gardener than planting things in the ground. You have to remember to water regularly, they're a pain when you go on holiday unless you a have watering system or someone to do it for you. Long term, they need feeding & soil/compost topping up or replanting. Plants in pots can also be quite fussy about their position & won't thrive unless everything suits them well. Whereas planting in the garden is far more forgiving. The soil is usually good enough unless you have "fussy" plants that need a particular soul type, plants rarely die of thirst while you are away & they never need reporting. Pots can look great but I wouldn't view them as an easy option, I find them quite labour intensive compared to flower beds that more or less look after themselves. Anyway good luck & enjoy watching your garden come to life over the coming years.

What great pointers, I really appreciate everyone’s advice and suggestions. Sadly as bed space is limited I think it is going to have to be containers for now - hence starting small scale...

I wouldn't recommend any pots for an inexperienced gardener. They take far more work in watering and you're more likely to lose plants.

If you plant in large pots that suit the size and growing conditions of the plant then watering isn’t a problem. It’s only intensive in the summer when we might get weather like this.
The OP said the garden was NW so some shade during the day. Monty recommends a thorough drenching once a week.

My favourite (although it's the wrong time of year now) are the "apricot shades" begonias from Thompson and Morgan. Tonnes of colour and they fountain beautifully over the sides of the tubs. You can buy them garden ready if you're not confident bringing them on from plugs.

Sweet peas will need a lot of watering, they're thirsty plants and grow very long roots, so I've never tried them in pots.

I always do well with winter flowering pansies and violas (they flower long after winter for me) and I like being able to move the pots around for colour in different places.

Hydrangeas - for colour and impact I love mopheads. They get thirsty in pots so water them well, but I find they grow well. They like to be in some shade rather than full sun.

Cosmos - you grow from seed each year, super easy to grow them, come in different colours. They grow tall, so have impact and you can cut them to have flowers in the house. Mine are growing better in pots than the ground.

Tomatoes - easy to grow, I'm growing them in pots. They make the garden smell pleasantly of tomatoes and the bees are always buzzing round them.

I've got a small patio and have some trees growing in large pots, the garden centre can advise you - so far mine are happy!

Enjoy!