Fall containers with ornamental grasses

Ornamental grasses

Looking to change up your containers for fall? Add texture and interest to your late-season containers with low-maintenance and versatile ornamental grasses.

Autumn sunset container with ornamental grasses

Welcome fall with a bold statement! This container (created in late summer, for fall!) works with the rest of the fall decor on the porch: grasses echo the cornstalks, while orange bougainvillea and bittersweet pumpkin pick up the oranges.

Container Maintenance Tips

Bougainvillea is a tropical vine that can handle moderately dry conditions. But if set in full sun and given even moisture, it will thrive! If it starts getting too long, prune it back to a set of healthy leaves. (Be careful to avoid thorns!) Salvia, smokebush, and grasses are all low-maintenance plants. Put them in place and let them be. Then, move them into the garden if they're hardy (Japanese silvergrass and smokebush will survive as far north as zone 5, Napier grass as far north as zone 7) or throw them out and start fresh next year.

List of plants (number per plant)

A) Bougainvillea Bougainvillea 'Bengal Orange' (1)

B) Japanese silver grass Miscanthus sinensis 'Plutonwonder' (3)

C) Smokebush Cotinus coggygria 'Royal Purple' (1)

D) Salvia Salvia curanitica 'Black and Blue' (1)

c) Napier grass Pennisetum purpureum 'Prince' (1)

F) American bittersweet Celastrus scandens (1 cutting branch)

A grand setting with ornamental grasses

Warm rusty-red chrysanthemums are the stars of this container... or are they? That's a tough call! You could make a good argument that greenery rules here too! But when you're deciding whether to top the list with flowers or leaves, see how well they work together.

The bronze switchgrass and red tips on the euphorbia echo the color of the mums (and the container!), while the lilyturf shares the same contrasting edges as the euphorbia. This collection of plants will look great in your late summer or fall garden for weeks.

Container planting tips

There are two ways to access this container. In late summer, you may decide to plant in the fall. If so, choose chrysanthemums with lots of unopened buds for a longer blooming period. Using this approach, you don't have to worry too much about how much sun or fertilizer you get—those plants won't last long in their container.

Or, try the old-fashioned plant-replacement technique: plant this container in spring, and add some pretty summer-blooming starflowers, marigolds, or miniature roses. When they start to fade, pull them out and put the mums and kale in their place to keep your container longer.

List of plants (number per plant)

A) Switchgrass Panicum viragatum 'Heavy Metal' (1)

B) Chrysanthemum Chrysanthemum 'Helen' (2)

C) Euphorbia euphorbia x Martini Helena's Blush ('Ineufel') (1)

D) Ornamental Kale Brassica Oleracea acephala (1)

c) Lilyturf Liriobe spicata 'Silver Dragon' (1)