Mix and match thrillers, fillers, and spillers for spectacular spooky season containers.
Thrillers
These plant options add height and visual impact to container planting combinations.
Choose a thriller that matches your container’s color scheme or adds bold color.
Credit:Carson Downing
Remember to choose a thriller that requires the sameamount of sun and shadeas the other plants in the container.
Plus, before its flowers produce the fluffy cotton, they change colors from white to light pink.
Purple ornamental cotton plants thrive in hotter climates.
Credit:Dean Schoeppner
Its foliage can grow to 6 feet with its flowers growing 1 foot taller.
‘Tropicanna’ black canna grows best in full to part sun and in warmer climates.
The plant is both drought- and heat-tolerant and blooms from spring to fall.
Credit:Edward Gohlich
‘Red Star’ Cordyline
‘Red Star’cordylinehas deep red leaves that can reach 6 feet or more.
But, in smaller containers, the fountain-like leaves will stay a little shorter.
This thriller plant requires part to full sun and is alow-maintenance plantperfect for moderate to warm climates.
Credit:Jay Wilde
Jay Wilde
‘Mystic’ Dahlia
These thriller plants add an array of colors to container gardens.
‘Mystic’dahlialeaves and stems go from bronze to nearly-black.
Depending on variety, the plants are topped with yellow, orange, pink, or red flowers.
Credit:Blaine Moats
They reach about 30 inches tall and don’t need staking.
Fillers
Fillers do exactly what the name suggeststhey fill space in the container.
Filler plants are usually midrange height, filling in the gaps between tall and short plants.
Credit:Ryann Ford
The leaves also have red undersides, creating a two-tone effect.
Place ‘Purple Prince’ in a spot with filtered sunlight for the best color development.
‘Ostica’ Bronze African Daisy
The purple centers of ‘Ostica’ bronzeAfrican daisiesalmost seem to glow.
Credit:Carson Downing; Produced by Scott J. Johnson and Jessica Thomas
‘Ostica’ blooms best in full sun.
Purple Basil
Purplebasil’sdark-hued leaves are both ornamental and edible (with a clove-like flavor).
Place purple basil plants in full sun, and check that the soil is moist but well-drained.
Credit:Carson Downing; Produced by Scott J. Johnson and Jessica Thomas
The peppers are edible, but the plant is grown more for its looks rather than its peppers.
‘Black Pearl’ grows to be 18 inches tall and requires full sun.
Put a container with black mondo grass in a spot with part sun.
Credit:Carson Downing; Produced by Scott J. Johnson and Jessica Thomas
Pair dark coleus with brighter thrillers and spillers to create a stunning container garden.
Spillers
Spillers are plants that cascade or “spill” over the edge of a container.
Spiller plants don’t grow to be very tall, preferring to sprawl and trail instead.
Credit:Carson Downing; Produced by Scott J. Johnson and Jessica Thomas
They are meant to add visual contrast compared to the tall, upright thriller plants.
‘Bronze Carpet’ Stonecrop
The bronzy-red succulent leaves of ‘Bronze Carpet’ stonecrop are highly drought-tolerant.
Place stonecrop plants in full to part sun and water sparingly throughout the season.
Its semi-trailing flowers bloom in the spring and are sweetly fragrant.
The plant’s dark purple stems and leaves reach up to 7 inches long.
Place containers with ‘Purple Pixie’ in full sun or part shade to produce best-looking foliage.
‘Superbells Blackcurrant Punch’ Calibrachoa
Like its name suggests, ‘Superbells Blackcurrant Punch’calibrachoapacks a hefty color punch.
Its large, dark centers andbright pink flowersmake the plant especially distinct.
Its leaves will be darkest in full sun, but the plant can handle shady spots, too.
‘White Stream’sweet alyssumadds a lighter color and softer texture to the mix.
Place the container in full to part sun and water regularly.
Coleus + Petunia
Different varieties of coleus are easy to mix and match.
‘Black Ray’petuniasround out this dark, yet colorful container arrangement.
Place these plants in full sun for best leaf color and flowering.
Above them soars anelephant’s earplant with huge burgundy and green leaves.
This container combo is best for a shady spot.
A spot with bright but indirect light works best for these plants.
