When most people think about container gardening, they think flowers. Petunias, geraniums, impatiens — the classics that fill garden center carts every spring.
And there is nothing wrong with any of those. But some of the most interesting, most useful, and most beautiful things you can grow in a pot this summer have nothing to do with flowers at all.
Here are ten of them worth trying — plus the one thing you need to know before you plant anything, anywhere.
Before You Plant Anything — Know Your Light
This is the step most gardeners skip. And it is the one that causes the most quiet heartbreak.
You fall in love with a plant at the nursery, bring it home, put it in the spot that needs the most help — and then watch it slowly decline because that spot doesn't have the right light for it to thrive. Light requirements are not suggestions. They are the conditions a plant genuinely needs to grow well.
Before you invest in any pot or planter this summer, spend a day observing your space. I check three times — morning, noon, and early evening. That tells me exactly what I'm working with. Here's what to look for:
Full sun — six or more hours of direct sunlight per day.
Part sun — four to six hours including strong afternoon rays.
Part shade — four to six hours but gentler morning and early evening light.
Full shade — fewer than four hours.
The time you spend observing saves you from years of buying the wrong plants for the wrong spots. Get this right first and everything else gets easier.
1. Lemongrass
If you want drama in a pot — real, stop-you-in-your-tracks height and presence — lemongrass is your thriller. It grows tall, arching, and architectural, with a beautiful blue-green color that plays beautifully against flowering plants. It loves heat and full sun, which makes it perfect for a summer patio or deck. And as a bonus it's wonderfully fragrant and useful in cooking, particularly in Thai dishes.
2. Pineapple Mint
Most people know mint — and most people know it spreads aggressively if you let it loose in the ground. In a pot it's perfectly contained and absolutely beautiful. Pineapple mint is my favorite variety for containers because of its variegated green and cream leaves and its lovely trailing habit. It's a natural spiller — the plant that cascades over the front edge of a pot and softens everything around it. Fragrant, pretty, and useful in teas and summer drinks.
3. Coleus
Coleus has had a genuine renaissance and for good reason. The variety available now is extraordinary — from deep burgundy and chartreuse to intricate patterns of pink, purple, bronze and green. It grows beautifully in containers, handles part shade gracefully which makes it perfect for spots that don't get strong afternoon sun, and provides season-long color without ever needing to bloom. If your deck or patio is on the shadier side, coleus is your answer.
4. Ornamental Peppers
Tiny, jewel-bright fruits in shades of purple, yellow, orange, and red — ornamental peppers are one of the most eye-catching things you can grow in a summer pot. They love heat and full sun, they're compact and well-behaved in containers, and they provide color all the way into autumn. Most varieties are edible but extremely hot — grow them for the show, not the salsa.
5. Millet
This one surprises people. Millet — the same grain you see in bird feeders — is a stunning ornamental plant when grown in containers. It adds height and dramatic texture as a thriller, with beautiful seed heads that catch the light and move beautifully in a breeze. I first noticed it being used by Amish gardeners in their container arrangements and it stayed with me. It's particularly spectacular in late summer and fall when the seed heads mature. If you want something genuinely unexpected in your pots this season, try millet.
6. Herbs as Their Own Garden
I always grow my herbs in containers and they have their own special setup — on my deck railing right outside the kitchen door, close enough to grab while I'm cooking. I keep two pots: one with my everyday herbs — chives, sage, rosemary, dill, thyme, and flat-leaf parsley — and one dedicated to Italian herbs, two basil plants and oregano. Think of it as a kitchen garden in miniature. Nothing beats stepping outside to snip fresh herbs straight into what you're making
7. Edible and Ornamental Together
One of the most satisfying things you can do in a container is mix edible and ornamental plants in the same pot. Herbs make wonderful companions to flowers — they add texture, fragrance, and usefulness to arrangements that would otherwise be purely decorative. Chives used as a vertical element in the center or back of a larger pot. Trailing thyme spilling over the front edge instead of lobelia. Flat-leaf parsley as a lush green filler. Your containers can be beautiful and useful at the same time.
8. Cherry Tomatoes
A single cherry tomato plant in a large container on a sunny deck is one of the most rewarding things a gardener can grow. They need full sun — six hours minimum — and a pot that's at least 12 to 14 inches deep with good drainage. But the payoff is extraordinary. Fresh tomatoes, still warm from the sun, straight from the pot to the plate. If you want to combine them with herbs, basil is the classic companion and they genuinely seem to thrive together.
9. Dwarf or Patio Varieties of Vegetables
Plant breeders have developed compact varieties of almost every vegetable specifically for container growing — patio cucumbers, bush beans, dwarf kale, compact zucchini. If you've assumed vegetables are only for big in-ground gardens, this is worth reconsidering. A few well-chosen pots on a sunny deck can produce a surprising amount of food. Look for words like 'patio,' 'bush,' 'dwarf,' or 'compact' on the label.
10. Dramatic Foliage — Elephant Ears, Caladiums, and Cannas
For pure visual impact nothing beats bold tropical foliage in a summer container. Elephant ears bring enormous, architectural leaves in shades of green, black, and purple. Caladiums offer intricate patterns of pink, red, white, and green and handle shade beautifully. Cannas add height and a tropical exuberance that makes any pot look like it belongs somewhere warm and luxurious. All three love summer heat and reward you with drama all season long.
A Note on Getting Started
If you're looking at this list and feeling inspired — but also a little uncertain about how to actually put a pot together so it thrives all season with minimal effort — that's exactly what our Container Gardening Secret Sauce Mini-Course covers. Not plant selection, but the how: the right pot, the right mix, the right planting technique, and the simple habits that keep containers looking beautiful without running you ragged.
It's available right now for $17 — less than a trip to the garden center — and you can start it today. 🌿
https://therelaxedgardener.com/pages/container-gardening-secret-sauce-sales2
