Potted porch plants offer the perfect way to give your home some personality and beauty. Porch gardening allows you to exercise your creativity and curate a space that is not only captivating but also elevates your home’s aesthetics.
There’s a perfect plant waiting to thrive on your porch, whether the space basks in full sun or is tucked away in the shade. However, you must choose the plants carefully because the amount of sunlight your porch receives determines the kind of plants suited for the area.
With that in mind, let’s go through the best potted plants for full sun porch and those that thrive in the shade.
Best Potted Plants For Full Sun Porches
If your porch receives full sun, choose plants that flourish in bright, direct sunlight. These include:
1. Geraniums
They are vibrant, versatile, adaptable, easy to care for, resilient, and classic sun-loving porch plants. Choose from colors such as pink, coral, red, and white to add a burst of color to your porch.
Although geraniums love sunlight, they also do well in partial shade. Regarding watering, let the top soil dry out between waterings because these plants prefer slightly dry conditions.
Good drainage is paramount for planting geraniums. Therefore, use a potting mix with sand or perlite to prevent waterlogging.
Hardiness zones: 9-11
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2. Lantana
Do you wish to attract butterflies to your front porch? Plants some lantanas. These heat-loving plants are known for their color flower clusters in different shades, including yellow, orange, pink, and purple. This gives you an opportunity to pick colors that elevate the look of your porch.
To make your lantana arrangement more visually appealing, consider growing this flower with other sun-loving plants. However, ensure the plants you choose have the same water and sunlight requirements as lantana.
While lantanas are generally pest resistant, inspect the plants regularly and treat them if needed because they can attract aphids and spider mites.
Hardiness zones: 7-11
3. Petunias
Grow petunias on your porch for a stunning display of trumpet-shaped flowers throughout the growing season. The colors of the flowers include orange, purple, red, black, pink, white, variegated, and yellow. Also, petunias come in different types, including grandiflora, multiflora, and wave varieties.
To keep your petunias healthy, look out for common pests. In addition, remove spent flowers frequently to stimulate continuous blooming. Furthermore, use a well-draining potting mix.
Hardiness zones: 10-11
4. Cannas
These tropical plants that produce large, bold foliage and colorful flowers are perfect for your sunny porch. Cannas come in different flower colors and heights, with popular varieties including ‘Australia,’ ‘Pretoria,’ and ‘Tropicanna.’
Cannas love full sun, and more sunlight generally results in better blooming. Ensure your porch receives direct sunlight at least 6-8 hours each day. In terms of the soil, a mix of potting soil and organic matter like compost or well-rotted manure suits these plants.
Hardiness zones: 8-11
5. Mealy Cup Sage
With their vibrant flower, mealy cup sage can be a wonderful addition to your front porch. This versatile plant has attractive tubular flower spikes in a range of colors, including shades of blue, purple, and white. For blue flowers, grow ‘Victoria Blue’ or ‘Strata.’
Besides the stunning colors, mealy cup sage flowers attract bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds, adding a lively touch to your porch while supporting local pollinators.
Mealy cup sage will not overwhelm your pots but still produce abundant flowers owing to its compact, bushy growth habit.
Hardiness zones: 8-10
6. SunPatiens
This is a hybrid impatiens variety specifically bred to thrive in full sun to part shade, making them perfect for your sunny porch. Busy gardeners will love SunPatiens because it is known for its low-maintenance nature and resistance to diseases, which makes caring for it a breeze.
Pick slightly acidic to neutral, high-quality, well-draining soil for your SunPatiens, and make sure your porch gets at least 4-6 hours of direct sunlight daily. Fertilize SunPatiens often with a water-soluble, balanced fertilizer to foster abundant blooms and healthy growth.
Furthermore, pinch back the SunPatiens’ tips to encourage bushier growth.
Hardiness zones: 10-11
7. Zinnias
Add vibrant hues and a cheerful touch to your sunny porch with zinnias’ daisy-like flowers. You will realize optimal growth and abundant flowering if your porch receives at least 6-8 hours of direct sunlight each day.
Choose the zinnia shape and size that suits you, depending on your preference and available space. Common types include dwarf varieties, cut-and-come-again varieties, and giant zinnias.
Moreover, you could pair zinnias with other sun-loving annuals or perennials to create a visually appealing and diverse container garden.
Hardiness zones: 3-10
8. Rosemary
This hardy perennial plant adapts well to container gardening and would look good on your porch and make the area fragrant. Besides that, you will have fresh herbs for cooking. Grow your potted rosemary in well-draining pots- a single rosemary plant is best grown in a medium-sized container.
Rosemary thrives in full sunlight- your porch should get direct sunlight every day (at least 6 to 8 hours). Although this herb is more cold-tolerant than many other herbs, protect it during extremely cold weather. Consider planting rosemary with other hardy herbs like thyme, oregano, sage, and lavender.
Hardiness zones: 6-11
Best Potted Plants For Shaded Porches
You don’t need a sunny porch to establish a thriving garden of potted plants. The plants below prefer growing in the shade.
9. Begonias
One of the most alluring features of begonias is their ability to produce vibrant, showy blooms that add color to spaces, including shaded porches. So, create a visually appealing and inviting atmosphere on your porch with begonia’s red, pink, white, or orange flowers.
Beyond the blooms, begonia’s foliage showcases exciting leaf shapes, textures, and colors, ranging from glossy green to deep burgundy. Begonia cultivars suitable for your shaded porch area include wax begonias, tuberous begonias, dragon wing begonias, rex begonias, and begonia ‘non-stop’ series.
Hardiness zones: 10-11
10. Hostas
These plants are typically grown for their stunning foliage rather than flowers. These leafy wonders can breathe life into your shaded porch, making the area more elegant and lush.
Some hosta varieties produce spikes of attractive blooms in summer, but the foliage remains the primary attraction. Whether you choose classic varieties like ‘Halcyon’ or bolder options such as ‘Sum and Substance,’ your porches’ appearance will be elevated.
Once your hostas are established, all you need to do is water regularly, fertilize occasionally, and divide hostas every few years.
Hardiness zones: 3-9
11. Coleus
This is another shade-loving plant renowned for its attractive foliage. If you want to infuse an explosion of color, making it more relaxing and admirable, embrace this plant and add it to your porch plant collection.
Coleus is a reliable source of visual appeal on shaded porches from spring to fall. This is because, unlike plants that get their color from flowers, coleus rely on foliage that remains consistent and vibrant throughout the growing season.
Coleus offers endless possibilities for porch landscaping. They range from compact varieties suitable for containers like ‘Wizard Velvet Red’ and ‘Wizard Sunset’ to larger ones for landscape beds.
Hardiness zones: 10-11
12. Fuchsia
Fuchsia is an enchanting, graceful choice for a shaded porch that yearns for color and elegance. Its distinctive, drooping flowers, often bi-colored in shades of pink, purple, red, and white, are a major attraction.
The tubular blooms dangle gracefully from the stems, making your porch charming and sophisticated. Morning sun or bright indirect light is ideal for fuchsia. Shield it from the strong afternoon sunlight to avoid scorching the leaves.
Hardiness zones: 10-11
13. Heucheras
Celebrated for their stunning foliage, heucheras are shade-loving perennials in various colors, from deep purples to vibrant greens. These plants add color and texture to shaded porch containers, and their foliage often changes color with the seasons.
Heucheras’ compact growth habit and diverse foliage make them versatile companions for creating visually appealing potted arrangements. For some drama, choose ‘Black Pearl,’ ‘Georgia Peach’ for warm tones, and ‘Palace Purple’ for regal.
Hardiness zones: 4-9
14. Phlox
Introducing vibrancy, color, and lushness to your shaded porch doesn’t have to be hard with phlox. Many phlox varieties have a trailing or cascading growth habit that adds a dynamic and visually appealing element to porch landscaping.
This plant adapts well to container gardening, allowing you to experiment with different arrangements, including hanging baskets, pots, or window boxes.
Hardiness zones: 4-8
15. Creeping Jenny
This plant’s main appeal lies in its trailing or cascading growth habit; hence, it is ideal for hanging baskets, containers, or the edges of porch planters. Its golden-yellow stems create a stunning contrast against dark green foliage.
The foliage remains colorful throughout the growing season for continuous visual interest. Although it can thrive in full sun, creeping jenny also adapts well to partial shade or dappled sunlight.
Hardiness zones: 4-9
Conclusion
By carefully selecting the right plants and providing proper care, you can create a welcoming and visually appealing porch oasis that reflects your style and love for gardening. Each plant brings a unique charm to outdoor spaces, so pick out your favorite plants and let your porch bloom into a haven of natural beauty.
Hey there, I’m Derek Schew, a writer for Lawnholic.com, where we cover everything and anything related to lawns. As someone who’s spent countless hours tending to my own lawn, I’m passionate about sharing my knowledge and helping others achieve the perfect yard. From lawn care tips to product reviews, I’m committed to providing our readers with the most accurate and up-to-date information available. So whether you’re a seasoned lawn enthusiast or just getting started, I invite you to join our community and discover the joys of a lush, green lawn.