The Top 15 Potted Plants for Your Garden

By teaming stylish pots and planters with the right plants, you can easily transform an outdoor space into a lush oasis.

Our list of top-performing potted plants is divided into sun-lovers and shade-lovers, chosen for their good looks as well as for being robust and easy to grow.

Whether you’re looking for plants for your balcony, deck or backyard, with such a huge variety to choose from, you’re bound to find the perfect potted plant to suit your space.

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Shade lover: Peace lily (Spathiphyllum) A very popular indoor plant, this glossy-leafed beauty thrives in a warm, bright spot out of direct sun. The white blooms are very long-lasting.

Photo: Getty

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Shade lover: Fuchsia These are traditionally shade-lovers but the Sun Kisses range also takes full sun. They flower profusely throughout the year and will tolerate temperatures from -3˚C to 40˚C.

Photo: Getty

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Shade lover: Port wine magnolia (Michelia figo) A slow-growing yet very worthwhile large shrub. The dense, small leaves make an excellent screen, and the bubblegum perfume of its spring flowers is a bonus.

Photo: Getty

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Shade lover: Flamingo flower (Anthurium) Like peace lilies, these prefer bright light without direct sun in a warm climate. The flowers last for months: use them as a table centrepiece or for splashes of colour.

Photo: Getty

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Shade lover: Golden cane palm (Dypsis lutescens) If you need a tall (to 10m), dense, screen, this clumping palm is a great choice. It’s lush and undemanding, although drying winds and hot sun can burn leaf tips.

Photo: Getty

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Shade lover: Camellia (Camellia japonica) Dark, lustrous foliage is the perfect foil for large and beautiful winter flowers, in pink, red and white. Choose a smaller variety for pots.

Photo: aremediasyndication.com.au

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Shade lover: Fiddle-leaf fig (Ficus lyrata) Popular as a house plant in the 1960s for its handsome, large leaves and un-killable nature, this rainforest tree is enjoying a welcome comeback to garden designs everywhere. Tall and striking wherever it’s placed.

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Sun lover: Blueberry
Delicious blueberries are easy to grow in pots and have pretty, profuse flowers. Choose evergreen varieties such as Blueberry Burst to look good year-round.

Photo: Getty

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Sun lover: Geranium Big Red (Pelargonium x hortorum Big Red) The star performer among geraniums, with bold red flowers most of the year and terrific disease resistance.

Photo: Getty

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Sun lover: Chilean Jasmine (Mandevilla) Grow this long-flowering beauty as a climber or nip the tendrils for a soft, bushy effect. There are pink, white and crimson varieties, all with glossy leaves.

Photo: Getty

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Sun lover: Imperial Bromeliad (Alcantarea imperialis) For wow factor, this bromeliad plant is unequalled, especially the Rubra and Silver Plum varieties. They can reach two metres across, so allow room.

Photo: Simon Whitbread

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Sun lover: Dwarf sacred bamboo (Nandina Gulf Stream, Flirt and Obsession) Great texture and colour combine with toughness in this foliage plant. The colour intensifies in cool weather.

Photo: Getty

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Sun lover: Dwarf kangaroo paw (Anigozanthos Bush Gems series Bush Fantasy) Just one of many colours in this series, it’s bred for superior flowering and performance.

Photo: Ramm Botanicals

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Sun lover: Bird of paradise (Strelitzia reginae) Silvery leaves and exotic flowers make this a striking accent plant, yet it’s tough as nails. Suitable for hot, exposed and windy spots.

Photo: Brent Wilson

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Sun lover: Jade plant (Crassula ovate) A compact succulent with great form and pretty heads of pinky-white flowers. It practically thrives on neglect.

Photo: Brent Wilson