Indoor Container Gardening Ideas

With you could enjoy the outdoors even when you're stuck inside? Bring the earthy greenery, colorful flowers, and intoxicating aromas of your favorite outdoor retreat into your home with an indoor container garden. We’re showing you our favorite indoor planter ideas ever, from playful arrangements of unfussy succulents to pots overflowing with vibrant primroses. No matter the season, there are plenty of ways to bring your garden inside with these container garden ideas. Indoor planters are easy to create, and work in any area of your home, from the dining room to the den. Simply combine your favorite complimentary plants onto a tray, and show them a little attention every now and then. With tips on maintaining your indoor planters, location recommendations, and design tips, we’ve made it easy for you to bring these indoor garden ideas to life on your own. Freshen up your home with the glorious textures and colors of your favorite outdoor plants with these creative indoor planter ideas. 

Steal the Stage

Against a boldly patterned wall like this one, a planter must be dramatic enough to hold attention. Dark foliage gives a container impact and gravity.

CONTAINER RECIPE

1. Phalaenopsis orchid

2. parlor palm (Chamaedorea elegans)

3. Southern maidenhair fern (Adiantum capillus-veneris)

4. ‘Emerald Ripple’ peperomia

Echo Reds and Greens

Inspired by the pattern in the walls that surround it, this planter celebrates red, a vibrant shade that seems to give the wallpaper a third dimension. Pairing an upright grower with a plant that grows horizontally provides a stairstep of color and a diagonal line for the eye to follow. 

CONTAINER RECIPE

1. red flowering kalanchoe

2. mahogany fern (Didymochlaena trunculata)

3. episcia (E. cupreata ‘Silver Sheen’)

4. Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides)

Go Wild with Succulents

The thick, waxy foliage of succulent plants seems to have flesh, unlike thinner leaves. Cacti have their thorns, but these are soft and inviting, giving them presence and appeal—even without flowers. Although they almost appear to be fake, succulents grow satisfyingly fast.

CONTAINER RECIPE

1. flapjacks (Kalanchoe thyrsiflora)

2. ‘Spaghetti Strap’ agave 

3. ‘Hope’ peperomia

Experiment with Air Plants

The new year feels like a breath of fresh air, making it an ideal time to try air plants (Tillandsiasp.). These easy tropicals love warmth, air, and regular moisture. Foliage can be fine textured or thick and comes in greens, silvers, pinks, and reds. Leaves often blush before tiny flowers appear in purples, pinks, or reds. In the wild, air plants grow on trees and rocks, absorbing moisture through their leaves. The romantic Spanish moss that hangs from the branches of live oaks in the Coastal South is actually an air plant. Because they need no soil, these textural beauties are great for easy-care terrariums dressed up with aquarium gravel, shells, or pebbles. You can also mount air plants on cork bark or driftwood. Or create a modern look by hanging plants in clear glass globes. (For a great selection of terrarium supplies, visit shopterrain.com.)

CONTAINER RECIPE

1. hexagonal terrarium; available from lampsplus.com

2. red air plant (Tillandsia abdita)

3. Spanish moss (Tillandsia usneoides)

Bring Spring Indoors

Here, we've paired an assortment of popular bulbs with an industrial-style galvanized-metal container you might find at a flea market, antiques store, or online. Search local garden centers for inexpensive forced bulbs. Select small pots of individually forced bulbs, or look for large pots with multiple blooms for dividing. Make sure to buy healthy, firm bulbs with tightly closed buds. Pack bulbs closely to intensify their fragrance and beauty. Top off your living arrangement with lush, green moss. 

CONTAINER RECIPE
1. Dutch hyacinths
2. Trumpet daffodils
3. Pink tulips
4. Grape hyacinths
5. Miniature daffodils
6. Green sheet moss