Suitable pot plants for outside all year round

rebeccat2850aUQzTYgE · August 2023

I live in a flat (in north-east England) with no garden, and my expertise and competence in gardening are sub-zero. I'd like to use a half-bag of compost I have to put in a pot and grow a nice plant on the small paved area outside my front door. Can anyone suggest something suitable that would live all year round, where I'd buy it (I have no car so it must be small) and how I would ensure it doesn't die under my 'care'?

Fairygirl · August 2023

Hi @rebeccat2850aUQzTYgE - what direction [aspect] is the front door facing?
The problem with compost is that it won't sustain potted plants long term. The size of the pot is also an important factor.
Often, a site by a door can also be drier, even through winter, because it can prevent rainwater getting in well enough, so you would need to be vigilant with watering.
There are plenty of small, ground covering plants which will be ok for a while, but you might be better just having some spring bulbs in it - they'll be available from around the end of this month. Smaller ones like crocus would be fine, for example.

rebeccat2850aUQzTYgE · August 2023

It faces south. There's little or no cover for any plant in front of my flat, so rain would get right on it - maybe too much. Do 'spring bulbs' last through winter? What would I replace the compost with?

philippasmith2 · August 2023

What size pot do you have ? What compost do you have ? If you wish to grow year round, then basic MPC will not be much use unless you can mix with a heavier soil such as JI 2 or 3.
Whatever you grow will require attention and feeding as time goes on so you need to be prepared for that.
Spring flowering bulbs do as they say - give you a nice show during the Spring. As they die down, you can pop in some annuals for colour in the summer.
There are also some trailing plants such as Lobelia or Campanula but they will not provide colour all year round.
If you aren't too fussed about actual flowers, you could also use the variegated form of Vinca minor ( green/yellow leaves ) for year round "greenery". They do flower as well.
There is a lot you can plant BUT the size of your pot will limit your choices unless you want to keep emptying/replacing

rebeccat2850aUQzTYgE · August 2023

Hmmm... I think I'll just give the compost away on Freecycle. The little gardening I've done in the past has been disastrous, so I'd better not waste money on something I don't understand how to grow. Thanks for the advice!

philippasmith2 · August 2023

I'm sorry @rebeccat2850aUQzTYgE I didn't mean to put you off - perhaps when you get time to have a think there will be something you could do at a later date

rebeccat2850aUQzTYgE · August 2023

That's okay. I don't think this is for me.

Ceres · August 2023

Sometimes we just have to garden with what we have to hand. The perfect compost and container are not always available but nature manages to put on a show even when the conditions are not the best. Commercial bagged compost runs out of steam after a couple of months once the plant food therein is used up but you can keep feeding the plant with something like Miracle Grow (just using that as an example.....I don't benefit from this) though the plant will not need anything in the way of feed outside the growing season.....that is during the winter months.

An evergreen shrub such as euonymus would be ideal for your situation as it would give colour all year. Ivy can be planted at the edge of the pot so that it trails down the side. Bulbs are a great idea provided the pot is big enough to take the permanent plants as well as some additional greenery. Miniature daffodils are beautiful and some are scented.

As to where to buy them, you can get everything online or at DIY places. Some sellers are to be avoided at all costs and this thread will explain. https://forum.gardenersworld.com/discussion/1075286/warning-about-buying-plants-online/p1

There are lots of very good online sellers but if the price is too cheap or the pictures too lurid, avoid at all costs.

I have bought good plants from these people https://www.cowellsgc.co.uk/ and I'm sure other forum members will recommend other nurseries and garden centres that sell online. Don't buy bulbs or plants from sellers like Suttons or Thompson and Morgan but go to a company like Kiss my Grass (yes.....it's a real name), Farmer Gracy, or even Crocus who sell lovely things but are a bit expensive. Towards the end of the bulb planting season a lot of sellers reduce the price considerably and the only disadvantage to the gardener is a slightly later blooming time. You can buy bulbs in the supermarket and DIY warehouses though the choice won't be quite as large.

Good luck with the mini garden and I hope this leads to more pots and planters around your front door.

Dovefromabove · August 2023

I would plant some early flowering crocus … theyll be fine in your compost … some like these will make you smile back at them.

You can plant them in a double layer in your pot and they’ll look fantastic
https://www.crocus.co.uk/plants/_/crocus-chrysanthus-cream-beauty/classid.1000000352/

Then they’ll die down … (you don’t need to remove them) … then get some nasturtium seeds … just the short ones like these https://www.suttons.co.uk/flower-seeds/all/nasturtium-seeds-tutti-frutti-mix_MH-668 and at the beginning of April poke a few (4 -6 will be plenty) into the compost with your finger … just about up to your first finger joint.

They’ll be happy in that compost … just keep them damp but not soggy.

Put the pot up on three little bits of broken tile or similar so the water can drain out of the holes in the bottom easily. Make sure that the pot does have drainage holes.

As well as looking pretty you can add nasturtium flowers and leaves to your salads 😊 they taste a bit like rocket.

So … when you’ve tried crocuses and nasturtiums you’ll know whether you enjoy growing things or just find it too much to bother with. There’s nothing wrong with that … we’re all different thank goodness 😃

If you have any more questions please don’t hesitate to ask.

philippasmith2 · August 2023

Yes - there's certainly a lot you can do but " all year round " as requested in 1 pot ( size unknown ) is a bit of a different matter particularly when the OP isn't really into gardening as such.
You don't want to put people off but nor do you want them to spend time and money and be disappointed with the results either.

Ceres · August 2023

Psalm139 said:

rebeccat2850aUQzTYgE said:

Hmmm... I think I'll just give the compost away on Freecycle. The little gardening I've done in the past has been disastrous, so I'd better not waste money on something I don't understand how to grow. Thanks for the advice!

Hi Rebecca.

Mint. Get yourself a mint you like the taste of, either to eat or to make tea. Plonk it in whatever pot and compost you have, and water now and then. It’s hard to kill, smells nice when you brush past it, makes your salads fragrant and a few leaves in boiling water with a bit of honey make a comforting drink.

Enjoy it 😊

And if it's just bog standard mint you want, you can buy pots of it in the veg section at the supermarket.

Suitable pot plants for outside all year round

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