Let’s Talk!
651.500.7650
Thrillers, Fillers, & Spillers
Plant Pots Like A Pro!
I have already been to the greenhouse, bought
my first $100 of annuals (I give myself a $200
limit), planted them in my window boxes and
other pots but now have to wait for night-time
temps to moderate. So I carry all of my babies
out during the day for their sunshine food and
a drink and then tuck them back into their
garage bed at night.
As a home stager, I always begin with curb
appeal and one of the tasks I advise clients to
do is to display a showy pot of annuals near
their front door. Since everyone defines
“showy” differently, it’s important that I give
very simple but explicit directions of how to
create a great-looking potted container. I think
we’ve all seen (many) of those massive planters
in public spaces that are planted with one kind
of flower that barely grows above the edge of
the pot. That’s proof that many people don’t
know how to create beautiful planters. So
instead of the opportunity to showcase organic
beauty, what we see is mostly a huge, manufactured container. Blah.
I’m not a master gardener or a horticulturist
but I do love gardening and have learned a lot
from all of my many mistakes over the past 25
years. I’m not sure where I heard the cutesy
phrase “Thrillers, Fillers, & Spillers” but the
rhyming helps me remember this simple
formula that always works for me to plant
beautiful containers.
First and foremost, determine how much sun
your pot will get. Most annuals need full sun
(at least six hours) but there are some beautiful, brightly colored annuals that need their
shade to be dramatic.
The Thriller
This is the tall, spiky flower or foliage that
most garden centers put in the middle of their
pre-made planters. I usually put my thriller in
the back because I view my pots from the
front so I don’t want other flowers hidden
behind my thriller. I don’t pay attention to the
spacing directions either because our growing
season is short and I don’t want to wait half
the summer for impact. Yes, I’m a Type A!
The Filler
Next choose a wider, stockier annual that fills
out horizontally. There are a lot of fillers to
choose from and they don’t necessarily have to
be flowering. I’m really getting into foliage
more now and planted only a licorice plant in
my middle pot. It has such beautifully colored,
soft leaves and will contrast nicely between my
other two flowering pots. At least, I’m hoping
it does. It’s a canvas for me!
The Spiller
These cascading flowers or foliage are so
necessary to soften the hard edges of pots and
provide a flowing, fluid movement of mass
color. Spillers are sometimes labeled as a
trailing variety. For example, some Lobelia
grows more mounded and some kinds of
Lobelia trail or spill.
For my pots with 9-inch openings, I just
choose one thriller, one filler and one spiller
which is enough to fill the pot with a little
added potting soil in between the three. For
huge pots, of course you’ll want to plant more
than one of each.
Want to move beyond simple?
Take design to the next level by varying the
color, texture, shape, and sizes of the flower
and leaves between your thriller, filler, and
spiller. Add contrast with a deep, intense color
against a softer, pastel color.
In the image above, the thriller is the arching
grasses while one of the fillers is the only
flowering plant in the pot which appears to be
a purple/pink mum flanking the grass. The
ornamental kale is also used as a filler and it’s
large, almost round leaves contrast so perfectly
with the thin, long blades of grass. And I think
the spillers are different varieties of ivy with a
really cool succulent that also provides great
contrast with it’s thicker, lighter-colored,
variegated leaves. This succulent does bloom
at some point with hot pink flowers (I tried it
last year) which ties in with the pinkish mums.
This example is so much more dramatic and
stunning than those massive planters that I
talked about earlier. Those are just tragic.
Once you’ve chosen your annuals and get
them planted, then it’s time to nurture them
with daily watering, once-a-week fertilizing,
and dead-heading to promote fuller plants
with more flowers.
Enjoy!!!
Let’s Talk!
Roberta Peters
Birch Hill Interiors
651.500.7650
Twin Cities
Thrillers, Fillers, & Spillers
Plant Pots Like A Pro!
I have already been to the greenhouse, bought my first $100 of annuals (I give myself a $200 limit), planted them in my window boxes and other pots but now have to wait for night-time temps to moderate. So I carry all of my babies out during the day for their sunshine food and a drink and then tuck them back into their garage bed at night.
As a home stager, I always begin with curb appeal and one of the tasks I advise clients to do is to display a showy pot of annuals near their front door. Since everyone defines “showy” differently, it’s important that I give very simple but explicit directions of how to create a great-looking potted container. I think we’ve all seen (many) of those massive planters in public spaces that are planted with one kind of flower that barely grows above the edge of the pot. That’s proof that many people don’t know how to create beautiful planters. So instead of the opportunity to showcase organic beauty, what we see is mostly a huge, manufactured container. Blah.
I’m not a master gardener or a horticulturist but I do love gardening and have learned a lot from all of my many mistakes over the past 25 years. I’m not sure where I heard the cutesy phrase “Thrillers, Fillers, & Spillers” but the rhyming helps me remember this simple formula that always works for me to plant
beautiful containers.
First and foremost, determine how much sun your pot will get. Most annuals need full sun (at least six hours) but there are some beautiful, brightly colored annuals that need their shade to be dramatic.
The Thriller
This is the tall, spiky flower or foliage that most garden centers put in the middle of their pre-made planters. I usually put my thriller in the back because I view my pots from the front so I don’t want other flowers hidden behind my thriller. I don’t pay attention to the spacing directions either because our growing season is short and I don’t want to wait half the summer for impact. Yes, I’m a Type A!
The Filler
Next choose a wider, stockier annual that fills out horizontally. There are a lot of fillers to choose from and they don’t necessarily have to be flowering. I’m really getting into foliage more now and planted only a licorice plant in my middle pot. It has such beautifully colored, soft leaves and will contrast nicely between my other two flowering pots. At least, I’m hoping it does. It’s a canvas for me!
The Spiller
These cascading flowers or foliage are so necessary to soften the hard edges of pots and provide a flowing, fluid movement of mass color. Spillers are sometimes labeled as a trailing variety. For example, some Lobelia grows more mounded and some kinds of Lobelia trail or spill.
For my pots with 9-inch openings, I just choose one thriller, one filler and one spiller which is enough to fill the pot with a little added potting soil in between the three. For huge pots, of course you’ll want to plant more than one of each.
Want to move beyond simple?
Take design to the next level by varying the color, texture, shape, and sizes of the flower and leaves between your thriller, filler, and spiller. Add contrast with a deep, intense color against a softer, pastel color.
In the image above, the thriller is the arching grasses while one of the fillers is the only flowering plant in the pot which appears to be a purple/pink mum flanking the grass. The ornamental kale is also used as a filler and it’s large, almost round leaves contrast so perfectly with the thin, long blades of grass. And I think the spillers are different varieties of ivy with a really cool succulent that also provides great contrast with it’s thicker, lighter-colored, variegated leaves. This succulent does bloom at some point with hot pink flowers (I tried it last year) which ties in with the pinkish mums.
This example is so much more dramatic and stunning than those massive planters that I talked about earlier. Those are just tragic.
Once you’ve chosen your annuals and get them planted, then it’s time to nurture them with daily watering, once-a-week fertilizing, and dead-heading to promote fuller plants with more flowers.
Enjoy!!!
Let’s Talk!
Roberta Peters
Birch Hill Interiors
Twin Cities