Plants for small pots

Hi,
I’m very much a gardening novice and would appreciate any help. I’ve purchased a small ‘plant ladder’ for a small outdoor space. I would like to know what plants are suitable to be kept in small pots and even better if they are perennial and can stay in a small pot without needing to be moved (if that exists). Colourful and long lasting flowers would also be good.
Thanks for any help anyone can offer.

 

Hi @Dais72 , welcome to the forum! Ladder planter sounds great, please do post pictures as you build your display

The challenge with small pots is watering- during warm weather you may need to stand them in a tray and still water twice a day.

Would you be interested in hardy succulents? I like their character and they thrive on neglect. Many flower very prettily and most are easy to grow from seeds. Below are some snapshots of my Semprevivums, one is just about to flower (that's the mushroom like blob , it will open pink flowers), and the trailing one behind is seed grown Sedum that will hopefully flower soon.

Here are some links for inspiration:
Succulentplants.co.uk
Surrealsucculents

Some herbs are also very pretty and will tolerate draught. Thyme flowers very nicely and Marjoram and Chives are also lovely plants. Rosemary and Lavender are more shapely and will look good also in winter whereas the softer herbs will die back or look a bit straggly.

 

Thank you @Selleri for your reply, I had wondered about succulents so I’ll definitely be including some!

 

I’d not really thought about it to be honest (complete newbie). When I say small pot I’m thinking around 20-25cm diameter but could also accommodate a 60-70cm trough planter on one shelf. Thanks for getting back to me.

 

Maybe Alpine plants might work in small pots or a trough. Lots of choices with those

 

Aubrieta deltoidea are certainly suitable for smaller pots, floriferous and extremely low-maintenance. All they need is a very light watering when you first plant them and then they'll take care of themselves after that, only requiring the occasional light trim. Flowering time March-June. They are also fantastic little plants for wildlife and I've had butterflies, hoverflies, bee-flies and bees visiting them. I grow Blue and Red Cascade. Here is a male Orange-Tip butterfly visiting my Blue Cascade.

Nick

 

Great picture @Nikolaos . I've got small ceramic pots and a couple of Belfast sinks that are empty. I shall have a look for Aubretia deltoidea next time I'm in the garden centres here. They may have some that are in the reduced section as they are coming to the end of their flowering season.​

 

@luciusmaximus If you can, get a purple-flowered one rather than a pink one, it always seems to attract a few more pollinators in terms of numbers!

Nick

 

Thanks for the tip. Don't seem to have them in local hardware store. Maybe try garden centre next time I'm down that way.