For instant colour: 16 care-free plants that grow well in containers

By Robert Paul

If you love the colourful way flowers can perk up any backyard, patio or garden but don’t have the space, time or desire for a traditional garden, why not consider container gardening?

With the right selection of care-free plants that readily adapt to life in containers, whether on their own or mixed among other flowers, it’s easy to add a splash of colour almost anywhere you want it. Here are 16 low-maintenance, container-friendly plants to consider.

[Image credit: iStock.com/caoyu36]

Fuchsias' pendant flowers and vibrant colours make these plants very popular for growing in outdoor hanging baskets kept near living areas. What’s more, healthy plants on the brink of bloom are widely available at garden centres and will bloom all summer long with good care.

Like to know more? 4 tricks for healthy and full fuchsia plants

[Image credit: iStock.com/elenaleonova]

When you want vivid garden colour without much fuss, look no further than cosmos – not the stars in the sky, but the colourful flower. Even a small garden patch or container devoted to cosmos is a beautiful sight, especially when courted by butterflies.

Like to know more? Helpful tips for growing dainty, fuss-free cosmos

[Image credit: iStock.com/ooyoo]

Petunias come in practically any colour except orange, and they're a top choice among summer-flowering annuals. Resistant to heavy humidity, petunias prosper in beds, pots or hanging baskets, plus they're great for covering the bare bases of taller flowers.

Like to know more? 5 pointers for growing fabulous petunias

[Image credit: iStock.com/voltan1]

The beauty of begonias lies in their versatility: growing less than 30 cm tall and found in shrub beds or alone in containers, begonias tolerate shade, drought and humidity and spend the entire season smothered in a wealth of handsome, little open-faced flowers.

Like to know more? The key to cultivating versatile, care-free begonias

[Image credit: iStock.com/GomezDavid]

Daylilies are fairly trouble-free and the few problems they have are seldom serious. Merging harmoniously with many foliage and flowering plants, they can be massed for colour and the newer dwarf, continuous-blooming types are ideal for borders and containers.

Like to know more? 6 hints to help extend the life of your daylilies

Varied colours, shapes and sizes help make chrysanthemums among the world’s most popular plants. Anyone with fertile, well-drained soil and full sun can grow these beauties – which cover themselves with long-lasting flowers in fall in either containers or beds.

Like to know more? Proven advice for growing gorgeous chrysanthemums

Boasting some of the most gorgeous flowers of any vine, clematis produces abundant blossoms in colours including blue, purple, red, pink, yellow and white. Their staggering beauty makes them an easy choice to grow. The tough part? Deciding which variety you want to plant.

Like to know more? Choosing the best large-flowered clematis for your garden

[Image credit: iStock.com/prill]

Producing long-lasting flower-like bracts above handsome foliage, euphorbias are virtually trouble-free plants for any sunny garden or well-placed container: they thrive in poor soil, tolerate drought, and are impervious to pests and disease.

Like to know more? How to select, plant and grow trouble-free euphorbias

[Image credit: iStock.com/mrpluck]

Dahlias deliver brilliant colour and versatility for as long as warm weather lasts: dwarf types can be used in window boxes, pots or to edge sunny beds. The tall, large-flowered varieties, some with blooms as big as dinner plates, add colourful height to the garden.

Like to know more? How to plant and grow vibrant dahlias

Wisteria is a hardy vine that has it all: statuesque woody stems, feathery leaflets and long clusters of fragrant lilac, pink, or white pea-shaped flowers. Where space is limited, you can easily prune wisteria into an attractive umbrella shape on a single tree-like trunk.

Like to know more? 4 techniques to grow (and manage!) wisteria

[Image credit: iStock.com/yanjf]

Adaptable and long-lived, hydrangeas produce immense heads of papery florets from summer until fall. The handsome flower clusters, excellent for cutting and drying, appear on the tips of upright stems clothed in deep green leaves that are sometimes variegated.

Like to know more? Gardening secrets for growing care-free hydrangeas

With scarlet runner bean you can have your ornamental and eat it, too. Why? This vine produces colourful, eye-catching flowers followed by edible green snap beans: the more beans you pick, the more flowers the vine will produce! Talk about a win-win.

Like to know more? Care-free vines: hints for growing scarlet runner bean

[Image credit: iStock.com/space-monkey-pics]

Viburnums have it all: attractive foliage that changes colour in the fall, graceful flowers in white and pink, and prolific berries that feed birds in the colder months. Although there are many varieties to consider, each can add flair and character to your garden or landscape.

Like to know more? Planting and caring for viburnum shrubs

[Image credit: iStock.com/kazakovmaksim]

Believe it or not, roses are easy to grow and maintain whether in a garden or container. And with so many colours, sizes and shapes, you’re sure to find a perfect rose bush for every occasion and location you can think of – ready to add bright elegance at a moment’s notice.

Like to know more? 8 popular types of roses to grow in your garden

[Image credit: iStock.com/Mantonature]

Luckily for gardeners, lavender is not only easy to grow but looks as good as it smells. In addition, it’ll prosper for years with little care beyond annual pruning. No wonder the refreshing fragrance of lavender makes it one of the most popular scents in the world.

Like to know more? 7 facts about lavender every gardener should know

[iStock.com/SchmitzOlaf]

Coreopsis is one of the most dependable summer-flowering perennials you can grow, whether in neat garden-size clumps or nestled in a container. Almost unaffected by drought, coreopsis can provide a brilliant display of sunshine-coloured blooms all summer long.

Like to know more? Helpful hints for cultivating colourful coreopsis

[Image credit: iStock.com/schnuddel]