There's more than one way to plant up a pot. Be inspired by these wonderful potted designs.
ABOVE: They're simple and contemporary; they're large and have strong architectural shapes. Get the biggest pots to create drama at the entrance to your home.
Each pot contains Pittosporum tenuifolium, cotoneaster, sedum, and juniper.
ABOVE: A single pot can add a splash of colour by a path or, for a garden look on a patio, cluster three pots together. Create your own combinations from listings for your climate. Use large containers and a good potting mix; buy blooming perennials in litre bags.
ABOVE: Dramatic and water-wise are the features of this container with low-water Echeveria and New Zealand flax filling up a pot.
ABOVE: Create a meadow in a pot. Small-leafed plants share a 60cm diameter concrete bowl. Silvery Festuca glauca fills the centre while purple grass hens and chickens a silver-leafed hebe and a slow-growing dwarf Syzygium (also sold as Eugenia) grow around it.
ABOVE: Even if you don't have much sunny ground, you can still experience the pleasure of harvesting your own vine-ripened tomatoes and other crops. All you need is a generous-size container, good potting soil, and a suitable spot ― a patio, deck, or corner that gets at least six hours of full sun a day.
Vegetables in containers add visual punch to the landscape. Choose large, decorative containers and surround them with smaller pots of colourful flowers, and you'll have attractive focal points ― and a bounty of vegetables ― all summer long. Most standard-size vegetables are suitable for container culture.
ABOVE: Grow your own herbs for the kitchen. Arrange herbs in a container to a striking effect: Oregano, 'Golden' sage, 'Tricolour' sage, chives, and lemon thyme. You'll need a big pot. Fill it slightly more than halfway with rich, fast-draining potting soil. Position the plants, still in their containers, about 10cm apart on top of soil. When you're satisfied with their placement, knock each from its container and plant. Fill in around plants with potting soil. Feed every two weeks.
ABOVE: Dress up a plain courtyard with some castoff furniture that can be freshened and given new life as garden decor. A recycled mirror and a cafe chair create an intimate spot on the terrace along with a selection of cacti and succulents.
