Even if you don’t have a specific outdoor area for gardening, you can still put potted plants outside and have a peaceful, quiet space to enjoy nature outside.
There is likely a stoop or perhaps a fire escape, maybe a driveway or a little patio off of an apartment that you can transform with a few examples of foliage meant to bring joy.
There are so many different ways you can add, whether you want to have hanging pots, climbing greenery, tall trees with some growing straight (so there’s not much room needed), or small foliage in awesome pots making a statement on their own, check out this this resource from Planted Pot for ideas. If you happen to be new to gardening, of course, you might want lower maintenance options until you grow your skill level, and then you can try more complex plant varieties.
Some tough plants require minimal care and attention, can handle fluctuations in temperature, and some need little watering. Let’s look at the list to help make a more educated decision.
Options For Low Maintenance Plants
It can be tricky when you want to have an outdoor space to sit and enjoy nature, especially potted plants you’re growing yourself. Just because your area might be limited doesn’t mean you can’t have any. It merely means you need to be selective about your choices.
If you have a genuinely tiny space, you might need to get succulents in cool pots or smaller foliage that sits in different sorts of containers to make them stand out. It’s a matter of being creative.
If you have a long and narrow space, you can get some trees that grow tall but not wide and fill in a couple of plants along the wall, plus maybe hang some. Learn about a few plants you can put in containers outside year-round at https://www.finegardening.com/article/10-plants-for-year-round-containers/.
The priority as a beginner is this foliage need to be low maintenance, so they survive in virtually any condition with minimal care. Check out a few examples of plants that might fit that description.
- “October Daphne Sedum”
The sedum is an incredibly hardy succulent for which it’s indicated there are roughly 600 varieties, each with unique leaf configurations allowing for a collection of different types in varied pots if you so choose.
These will fill in spots under taller foliage but not if those plants cover them in the shade since these need the full sun. They are cold tolerant as low as freezing
making them a perfect choice for planting outside.
- The rose bush
Roses have a bad reputation for being exceptionally high maintenance and very challenging to take care of. These are excellent container plants with the ability to climb with adequate training for a breathtaking appearance.
The more modern “cultivars” and the hybrids allow for a much lower maintenance requirement than what might have been true before.
When shopping online for the species, look for the “easy care” or “low maintenance” specific variety. If roses are able to have full sun and adequate water, there is little else you’ll need to do with them. Read here to find out if pots with drainage holes require saucers as well.
- The (clematis viticella) Clematis
The clematis is a climber with a graceful, lovely vine that will require a large pot and a trellis that it can travel along. It will provide plenty of height rapidly without needing a vast tree.
The species offers many different colors with a simplistic growth process and mounds of beautiful flowers. Purple is the most favored and classic.
- The (alvia rosmarinus) rosemary
Once you get the rosemary plant established, it has a reputation for being extremely tough with little need to even give it a second thought except for the fact that it can grow out of hand and need trimming.
It can handle dry conditions and withstand winter with no problem maintaining a vibrant green color each year. It does enjoy the sun with the potential to become sparse and leggy when placed in the shade.
- Hosta
Hostas are remarkably hardy plants that offer massive, stunning leaves, making a magnificent potted plant. The suggestion is that these are better in a container because the deer will be less likely to chow down than if they’re planted in the ground. The plant is a favorite for the deer community.
The species are fond of the shade, making them a good choice if you have a covered patio or fire escape area or even sit them under a taller tree that will keep them shaded.
Final Thought
If you’re hesitant to start a container garden because you’re new to the hobby and also because your space is limited, both of those reasons can be worked through relatively easily.
There is some flat surface where a few containers can sit for a small potted plant garden in almost any situation where there’s no yard.
It doesn’t have to be significant; it can be as small as a stoop in the front of an apartment building, the tiny space outside a window where a fire escape goes down, a patio of an apartment, even a driveway space where a few containers can sit as a decorative statement.
People put their plants in so many different areas to sit and enjoy a natural landscape.
As far as being a new gardener, there’s a whole list plus many, many more species that are low maintenance, even plants identified as varieties that you can’t kill even if you tried.
Start with one or two of these, and once they begin to thrive, take a step up to something a little more challenging, baby steps. Soon you’ll be an enthusiast.