Container Plants for Shade: My Favorites and More

See some of my favorite container plants for shade that I use in my larger planter located on our front porch. Many of these plants would also work well for a shady container hanging basket too.

I've been growing plants on my front porch in a large pot for years. There's nothing like a pretty planter full of flowers to greet your guests. The problem is that this area is covered, and shrouded from the sun by a large red maple tree.

It gets some morning sun but it's pretty shaded the rest of the day. So I've had to experiment with shade-loving plants in order to grow a lush and full planter. Here are my favorite shade plants for the front porch.

Favorite Shade Loving Plants for Containers

It's hard to find flowering plants that do well in the shade. Sometimes you need to think outside of the box.

Here are a few tips:

1. Use colorful foliage with interesting textures instead of only flowers.
2. They don't have to be full-shade plants. Try flowering plants that are marked part-sun or partial-shade
3. Increase your options by trying houseplants, perennials, dwarf varieties in addition to annuals.

P.S. These great choices can also be used in a shade garden or window box that's located in a shady area.

See me in action planting the plants in the container in the video above.

When it comes to planting my large front porch container I  tried a few different variations. My all-time favorite is Lamium. This little guy grows without fail.

Lamium is typically sold with pretty white and green foliage and either a purple flower color such as 'Orchid Frost' or white flowers like 'White Nancy.' However, many other varieties exist. There are pink flower varieties and a couple with golden leaves.

Look how big it grew last season from two 4-inch pots, over-flowing in front. At the end of the season, you can plant it somewhere sheltered in the garden, and often it will come back next year.

Depending on how harsh our winter is I can leave it in the same pot and it would come back next year.

Another favorite is this colorful Perilla Magilla growing in the back of the pot. It's similar to coleus with an upright habit but seems to be a more vigorous grower. Don't you love that bright pink pop of color? Again, look how much it grew from one 4-inch pot in just a few months in the image above.

Perilla Magilla is considered a tender perennial, so around here in my Zone 6 garden, we use it as an annual.

How to Design Your Shade Container

When designing container gardens for your shade-loving plants consider using the well-known thriller, filler, and spiller method.

1. Thriller - One tall plant in the middle or back. (Perilla, Coleus, Rex Begonia, Grasses)
2. Filler - Plants that will fill around the tall plant. (Impatiens, Fuchsia, Hostas, Heuchera (aka Coral Bells), Browallia, Coleus, Begonias, Torenia (wishbone flower), Maidenhair Fern, and other ferns)
3. Spiller - Plants that trail or vine over the sides of your container. (Lobelia, Bacopa, Sweet Potato Vine, Lamium, Trailing Fuchsia, Creeping Jenny)

The bottom line is, that even if you have a shady spot on your porch or patio, color and blooms can still be grown with the right plants and a little creativity.

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This Full Sun Planter post might be just right for you.