Low-Maintenance Fall Porch Pots

Celebrate fall by creating festive porch pots to celebrate the abundance of the season. With seasonal favorites like gourds, pumpkins, and corn stalks, you can make designs that are unique and capture the essence of autumn. Your designs don't have to be complicated, either! The following low-maintenance combinations are simple, stunning, and water-wise options to get you started.

A Heart of Kale

Ornamental kale is a low-maintenance fall classic to use as a centerpiece for your pots. The ruffled purple and green leaves of ornamental kale are a maze of beauty you can easily get lost in as you contemplate the layers. Place them in a circle around a tuft of purple fountain grass, and these two gems will compete for the "thriller" status in your planter. The “thriller, filler, spiller” method is a great way to have a balanced planter, featuring plants that stand out and “thrill,” bushy, smaller plants that “fill,” and plants that spill over the sides of the planter, called “spillers.”

With your thriller established, consider adding a low-maintenance flower to spill over the sides of your pot; this is often called the “spiller.” Portulaca is a vibrant option, as is a little evolulus. If your kale looks lonely, you can bring in some culinary herbs like rosemary or thyme to fill in the gaps; they will also suffuse your porch with seasonal fragrances and provide fresh ingredients for autumn dishes.

Gourds, Chrysanthemums, and Corn Stalks

With fall here, we have the opportunity to take advantage of the bounty of the harvest, including gourds. These beautiful, sometimes gnarly, bright-yellow squash can form the eye-catching centerpiece of your porch pot display. Place them at the front or center with tall stalks of corn rising behind them for extra flare. All that's missing now are bright dashes of flowers, such as a long-standing fall favorite, chrysanthemums, or a substitute flower of your choice. For each of the supplies listed, you can visit Roger's Gardens to pick up quality components for your design. With neither the gourds nor the corn stalks needing water, this display is water-wise and virtually maintenance-free, except for the occasional deadheading and watering of the chrysanthemums.

Bring Out the Pumpkins

At this point, you could plant your choice of flowers around the pumpkin, nestling it into a forest of blossoms. Or, to extend the fall theme a little more, you can lean or place a festive fall wreath around the pumpkin, which will add foliage and decoration without requiring a watering routine. Add some corn stalks to spill over the sides, bring in some birch branches in the background, and you're well on your way to a no-water, no-maintenance planter with plenty of seasonal charm.

To prevent your pumpkins from rotting, invert a small pot in the center of a larger, upright pot. Place it in your planter so that the top of the pot is level with the top of the planter, then place your pumpkin on top; this will create a stable pedestal for the pumpkin that keeps it out of the soil. Fill the soil, and then plant a ring of other plants and flowers around it.

Other Ideas for
Low-Maintenance Fall Planters

The fall season is all about the splendor of the harvest, bright seasonal colors, and the beauty found in everything that is withering, decaying, old, and rustic. With that in mind, we can add to the fall pot theme by choosing rustic containers made of weathered stone, aged wood, or tarnished metal. Straw bales on the porch also support the autumn style and can be mixed into the planter designs.

In southern California, as we all know, our fall season is warm enough to continue growing many flowers, which you can mix into porch pots for a uniquely Californian feel. Whether you want to blend succulents with traditional fall components or if you want to plant native species in your porch pots exclusively, you can easily create beautiful designs if you keep the thriller-filler-spiller formula in mind.

Make Your Designs Cohesive

Now that you have some planter designs in mind, remember that you can incorporate your designs throughout your entire porch for a cohesive aesthetic! If you use pumpkins or gourds in or around your porch pots, add a couple on your steps or by the front door. If you have corn stalks in your planters, lean some in the corner by your door. Remember, one of the fundamentals of good design is repetition. Planting similar colors in your porch pots will also help create a cohesive design.

If you are looking for supplies to support your decorating, we carry quality pumpkins, gourds, corn stalks, birch branches, and fall-inspired wreaths. For more ideas on low-maintenance pots or to see our diverse stock of flowers and seasonal decor, visit Roger's Gardens in Orange County!

For more inspiration, view: How to Decorate Your Fall Front Porch, How to Add Fall Color to your Indoor & Outdoor Gardens, Fall Container Gardening, How to Add Fall Color to Your Existing Landscape, and How to Decorate Your Front Porch with Grays and Gourds.