Ahhhh, Autumn!
The days are shorter, the weather is cooler, and the garden is taking on its Fall colors. The foliage is starting to change and soon we will see red, yellow, and orange leaves, apples on the trees and pumpkins turning orange in the fields.
The lower humidity makes me want to throw open the windows, get outside, go for a hike, or have a picnic. The options are endless!
It also makes me feel like decorating. I love Fall decorations! We like to take a trip to one of the many pumpkin farms nearby. You can walk through the fields and pick your own or pick them out of the huge bins. You can also pick up a gallon of apple cider or a jar of apple butter. It is a tradition that we do every year.
My favorite decorations are container gardens. Here is how you can create your own easy natural Fall decorations.
1. Pick Your Containers
To get started with my outdoor decorations, I like to gather up all of my containers that I plan to use. Be creative! Look for containers that fit your style. For me, it is anything galvanized. I have vintage buckets of all sizes, and washtubs too. I also love old concrete urns and baskets. The more unusual, the better
Get creative!
Above I have used a birdcage on my front porch that I just filled with branches, gourds, birds and whatever else that I could find. I then added a light, so the arrangement is illuminated at night.
When using plants, just make sure that all containers have a hole in the bottom for drainage. Plants do not like to be overwatered, and any hard rain can fill a container quickly, drowning your beautiful arrangement and killing your plants.
But don’t put holes in containers that you love. Some of my vintage containers are too precious to me to destroy, so I find a smaller clay or plastic flowerpot with holes that will sit inside of my decorative pot. Before placing the pot inside of the decorative container, I add rocks to the bottom, or a brick so there is plenty of room for the plants to drain. Keep checking it though after hard rains to pour out excess water that has collected in the bottom.
Above you can see that the mum is in a vintage galvanized bucket. Who wants a bucket with a hole in the bottom! So, I placed a brick in the bucket and sat the mum, in the pot it came in, inside the bucket. With the small tub next to it, I just took the empty plastic pots from the other plants that I used in my Fall Container Gardens and put them in the bottom of the tub. Then just placed pumpkins on top and filled in with ivy. Just look around and use what you have.
If you like the look of baskets, I just place the plants, in the pots they came in from the nursery into the basket. Once I like the way it looks, I cover the top with Spanish moss to hide the pots and tuck in a few pumpkins and gourds to finish the look.
If you have window boxes, don’t overlook them when looking for containers. They could use a change of plants by this time of the year. If you don’t have any window boxes, but like that look, you can Click Here for Purchase Options.
These can be filled with small pumpkins and some English Ivy for a really easy beautiful addition.
2. Go Shopping for Your Plants
Now, the fun part!! Before I go, I decide how many flowers I need. To help with this, it is important to take pictures of all of your containers. That way, when you get to the store, you will have an idea of how many plants you will take to fill them. For larger containers, you may just need 1. Other containers may need 5 or 6. As you are looking around, look at one of your containers at a time and go in search of what plants you like that will fit. Even after I have done this many times, it still takes me a while to find just the right combination, so don’t rush this process.
In the Mid-Atlantic area, where I live, I like to find plants that are hardy enough to withstand light frosts. My goal is to have them be beautiful through Thanksgiving, then I will be changing them out for my winter holiday decorations. With just the right plants, I can leave a few of my containers that are lovely until Spring. Then I just take them out and plant them in my garden.
When purchasing your plants, keep in mind that when combining multiple plants in a container, many people like to use tall plants, such as grasses, twigs or a tall flowering plant, sometimes called the Thriller to add height to the arrangement. Then they use the mid -range plants, known as Fillers. These will be the majority of the plants you will need. And finally, the Spillers that will flow over the side of your container.
Some of my go to plants for Thrillers are:
- Twigs- I love using Red Twig Dogwood branches for this purpose, but any will do, especially if they have lovely fall leaves on them. Use what you can find.
- Tall Ornamental Kale in green or purple
- Ornamental Grasses
My Fillers are:
- Hardy pansies
- Mums
- Coral Bells
- Dwarf Sunflowers
- Dwarf Kale
- Ornamental Cabbage, red, green or variegated
- There are many more! Just use what you like.
And for my Spillers I usually use:
English Ivy, green or variegated because they are very hardy and look beautiful.
I also like to use Sweet Potato Vines that come in many colors, but they are tender and will not survive a frost.
There are many other plants to use. I suggest that you go to your local nursery and ask for assistance. They are always happy to help. Large box stores may not be able to give you the information that you need, or the variety of plants, so if you are new to planting Fall containers, you may want to go somewhere that will give you their undivided attention.
And, if you live in a warmer, or colder climate your choices may be different. Your nursery may have totally different suggestions.
Other items I like to include are:
- Colored Fall leaves
- Pumpkins
- Gourds
- Indian Corn, I usually tie 3 together for impact.
And, if you have a garden or have a friend or neighbor that does, look for:
- Dried flower heads on stems
- Dried seed pods on stems
3. Shop for Pumpkins
After I have the flowers that I will be using, I then plan the number, color, and size of pumpkins that I will need and make a list. This is very important. I even put it in categories of large, medium and small. Otherwise, I spend a lot more money than I need to.
I love to mix pumpkins and gourds into my arrangements, tucking them in between the plants.
Or just use pumpkins and ivy to create a lovely topiary.
4. Plant Your Container
Once you have gathered all your material, start by separating them into groups that go together. Not only by color, but what you want to have as Thrillers, some Fillers and some Spillers.
Fill your containers about ½ full of potting soil and start arranging your plants in the containers, while still in their pots. This makes it easier to move them around without damaging their roots.
Once you are satisfied with the way the container looks, you have two choices. Either pour potting soil in and work it in around each of the pots, then carefully pull the plants with pots out. Now, remove the plant from the pot and it will easily slide right back into the hole you created. You may need to add or remove soil in the hole for any height adjustments so that all plants fit into their hole having the soil levels the same as they were in their pots, no plants higher than soil level in the container, or below, burying your plant stem below the soil.
The other way is to remove all of the plants with their pots once you are satisfied with the arrangement, placing them on the ground in the same order. Then fill your container with more soil and dig a hole for one plant at a time, starting with the inside and working your way out. Now fill in any holes between plants or the edge of your container.
Always make sure that there are no air pockets under or around plants where their roots could be exposed but make sure not to pack the soil too firmly around them, constricting their growth.
Now water your container well. If you see that the soil has settled, making holes, just fill them in with more soil. Check them after each watering or rain for the first couple of weeks and add soil when needed.
Even though I love Fall container gardens filled with thrillers, fillers and spillers, sometimes just a plant in a pot is enough.
Above you see a single mum in each of the 2 square pots, a small mum in a container, an ornamental cabbage in another and next to the house is a fern in a bucket with a branch of Fall leaves added.
Enjoy!
I hope that you have found this helpful and inspiring enough to try your own Fall Container Garden. Once you get the hang of it, you will want to do one for every season.
