Top 10 Container Gardening Trends to Try in 2025
With the holidays behind us, now is the perfect time to dream up your 2025 container gardens! This year’s trends embrace lighter moods, healthier living, and creative opportunities to transform your space. Whether you’re an experienced gardener or just starting out, these ideas will spark your imagination and inspire your Spring plans.
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Aesthetic Inspirations
1. Modern Meadow: Breezy, organic beauty simplified for containers.
The predominant trend in residential garden design this year is the “Modern Meadow,” a breezy, organic aesthetic created by swaths of perennial grasses and flowers, much like you’d see in a sprawling meadow, but simplified for the home landscape. To create this look on a smaller, more manageable scale, Katie Tamony, Chief Marketing Officer at Monrovia Plants, suggests using better-behaved plants, such as compact grasses and flowering perennials with extended bloom time.
Experiment with this style in a window box or container garden! Choose varying heights and textures for the most harmonious look. Not sure which plants will thrive in your zone? Monrovia.com has an easy search function to help! Type “meadow gardens” into the search bar in the top left corner of any page on the site, then refine your search by adding your zip code.
Quick tip: Keep it simple with three plants per pot — one grass, one flowering, and one foliage variety.
2. Nod to Nostalgia: Bringing back the charm of cottage gardens.
Another popular 2025 garden design trend relates to our longing for the comfort and familiarity of a simpler time. Garden Design magazine notes a resurgence in cottage-style gardens along with requests for “nostalgic touches” and “plants that remind them of their…grandmother’s garden.” Picture the serenity of a meandering gravel path bordered by mounds of beautiful flowers.
To embrace this trend, think about the flowers that hold special memories for you—roses, hydrangeas, and peonies are classic choices. Arrange them in weathered, earth-toned pots to evoke timeless charm. Cluster them in groups to soften corners, lead you to a destination in the garden, or welcome guests to your front door.
Shrub or tree roses can grow well in containers with full sun (6+ hours per day) and plenty of room for their roots to grow. Many perennial hydrangeas also do well in pots. Look for Proven Winners’ Invincibelle Wee White® and Wee Bit Grumpy®.
Quick tip: Plant just one specimen in each pot, then cluster pots in groups of three.
3. Industrial Chic: Concrete, metal, and minimalist planters ANCHOR OUTDOOR DECOR
I’m thrilled to see this edgy vibe highlighted as a trend this year! Florists’ Review calls it “Brutalist Bliss,” a take on the Brutalism architectural movement prevalent in the UK after World War II. It’s recognized by exposed concrete, steel, and glass. Pinterest is also highlighting a similar “Castlecore” aesthetic, which brings medieval, nearly goth elements to home decor and fashion.
I’m especially excited about this trend because it means the chunky cast stone and concrete composite pots I love aren’t going anywhere! These are the perfect vessels to blend in with your hardscape in shades of gray and sand, and they let your plants do all the talking.
Metal planters also fall into the industrial chic category. Choose styles with rings, finials, trim, or feet detail for visual interest and sophistication. Metal planters can look equally as attractive when planted with a tidy boxwood or a breezy ornamental grass.
Quick tip: To soften the harshness of industrial materials, pair concrete or metal planters with flowing ornamental grasses or delicate flowering perennials.
4. Fisherman Aesthetic: Maritime charm meets coastal-inspired gardens.
Another popular style gaining momentum this year is the Fisherman aesthetic, which I view as a more masculine evolution of the ubiquitous Coastal Grandmother style. Picture heavy knit sweaters, rough hewn wood, and natural rope, all inspired by maritime culture. We’re seeing shades of cream, navy, denim, and olive across fashion and home decor.
Quick tip: For a nod to the New England coast, fill woven planters and wooden barrels with mounds of grasses, Petunias, Geraniums, Ferns, or Hydrangea.
Plant-Forward Designs
5. Bold Tropical Foliage: Embracing Overly dramatic containers.
If you love big, bold leaves, then this trend is for you! Expect to see extra large displays of tropical plants both indoors and out this year. These might be featured as single specimens or arranged with other plants in eye-catching mixed container gardens. Oversized tropical leaves like Monstera and Alocasia command attention, bringing a lush, jungle-like atmosphere to your porch or patio.
Garden Media Group has noted the increasing popularity of “Holy Moly Plants”, those with interesting holes and fingerlike foliage, much like fashion designs with open backs or cutouts. Similarly, the National Garden Bureau has declared Monstera the houseplant of the year and Caladium the bulb of the year. Both of these make show-stopping container designs!
My talented friend Tracee Lund, owner of Potted Pleasures in Charleston, SC, has been nurturing a Split Leaf Philodendron (Monstera Deliciosa) on a covered porch for several years! (Below left.)
Quick tip: When using large tropical plants in mixed containers, select companion plants that will grow large enough to stand up to the dramatic proportion.
6. Flower Power: CelebratING flower-forward designs IN bold, happy hues.
Flower lovers, don’t despair! We’re celebrating flower-forward arrangements this year, too! Watch for floral designs with stacks of petals in vibrant color schemes and minimal use of foliage. Picture hombre layers of pink, orange, apricot, lavender, or chartreuse. Florists’ Review calls this style “Rodeo Rambler” for its fun, bold, and playful use of color and vessels.
This approach is stunning, but it’s a challenge to get this color-saturation in a container garden, since we use rooted plants that need foliage in order to grow all season. The workaround is to trick the eye by using plants with foliage that resembles flowers, bringing the illusion of more blooms and color to our arrangements.
Quick tip: Create this look in containers with colorful foliage plants such as Caladium, Heuchera, and Red Sweet Potato vine.
Left to right: Caladium, Angelonia, SunPatiens®, and Lantana commit to the all-pink scheme of this Summer window box; Heuchera foliage repeats the orange and rust tones of mums in this Fall window box; Every plant in this bowl blooms, except for the Sweet Potato Solar Power Red Heart, which still adds rich color; Sweet Potato repeats the red of SunPatiens®.
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7. Plant Palette: Trending colors to inspire your container GARDEN designs THIS YEAR.
Colors are very personal, but it’s fascinating to see the shades that are trending across outdoor decor, planters, and even plants! “Mocha Mousse” is Pantone’s color of the year. The company describes it as a warm brown with a nod to the comforts of chocolate and coffee. Sherwin Williams’ “Quietude” is a soft gray-green giving spa vibes. In contrast to these mellow tones, Pinterest’s chosen color for 2025 is a vibrant cherry red!
Quick tip: Southern Living® Plant Collection’s Clarity Blue™ Dianella and Proven Winners’ Silver Falls™ Dichondra make a sophisticated neutral container garden combo in an unglazed terra cotta pot. To energize the palette, add red Calibrachoa.
Gardens That Give Back
8. Offline Oasis: lush greenery for a screen-free escape.
Gardening is good for your health! Studies show that we’re seeking an escape from our digital world, and the garden remains a respite from screens and the deluge of social media we face daily. Plus, working with plants and connecting with nature is de-stressing. Enjoy a little “me time” in the garden in 2025!
Quick tips for beginner container gardeners:
Dabble indoors with easy-to-grow houseplants like Pothos or ZZ Plant.
Keep your first container gardens simple with a single Kimberly Queen fern (Partial sun, 3-6 hours) or Boston fern (Shade, 0-3 hours).
For a soothing palette, stick with shades of green and white.
Calming Container Design
White Christmas Caladium, Impatiens, English Ivy, and Creeping Jenny make a soothing palette of green and white.
Click here for more green & white container combos.
9. Portable Planting: Small-space solutions for flexible, moveable gardens.
Garden Design magazine reminds us that the practice of small space gardening continues to thrive, thanks to the control and flexibility of using containers! You can move pots around as needed to get light, shade, or rain. For renters, container gardening brings nature into your space without digging into the ground. From a budget perspective, investing in a few container gardens instead of a backyard overhaul is significantly more affordable.
You can grow almost anything in a pot that you would grow in the ground, other than very large species. Consider herbs, vegetables, seasonal annuals, and long-blooming perennials. Add petite or slow growing evergreens to your container gardens for structure and the feel of an established landscape.
Quick tip: Portable planting is perfect for small spaces and renters. Keep it simple by:
Choosing compact perennials for longer-lasting displays.
Investing in a dolly or heavy-duty pot mover to make rearranging a breeze.
10. Gardening with Purpose: Eco-conscious designs that make an impact.
One of the most important trends we’re seeing is gardening with purpose. Businesses and consumers alike are embracing environmentally-friendly practices and the aesthetics of these elements in our designs — such as the Modern Meadow. Container gardening and outdoor living spaces will follow suit.
Sustainable Hardscapes. Designers are being challenged to use repurposed or low impact hardscapes, such as reclaimed bricks or interlocking pavers that don’t require concrete or chemical glue.
Urban Gardening. Urban parks like The High Line in New York are turning concrete jungles into living, breathing garden oases. Raised beds and oversized containers are bringing plants to places without soil.
Drought Tolerance. Using plant varieties that require less water and can withstand drought are a sustainable and economical choice; hence, the popularity of Sage, Stonecrop, and Yucca cultivars.
Fire Resistance. The rampant wildfires we’ve experienced in the US are a painful reminder of how fragile the landscape can be. Thankfully, some plants are naturally fire-resistant, or tend to bounce back quickly after burning. These plants either have supple leaves with high moisture content, open branch structures, or thick bark that stays tight to the trunk.
Pollinator Magnets. Bring on the birds and the bees with containers and borders full of bloom-heavy plants, like Coneflowers, Scabiosa, Lantana, and Salvia.
It’s so important that we think about the natural challenges of our environment and make deliberate choices to overcome them.
Quick tip: It’s overwhelming to take on all eco-conscious practices at once! Pick one that feels most attainable for you and start there.
What’s your favorite 2025 trend? Let me know in the comments—and stay tuned for deep dives into each of these ideas in future posts!
Happy New Year!
Steph
PS: To compare these 2025 container gardening trends with 2024, check out last year’s trends roundup HERE.
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Sources:
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“2025 Year of Plants - National Garden Bureau.” National Garden Bureau. Accessed January 2025.
Cochrane, Ellis (2024, December). “2025's Biggest Flower Trends, According to a Chelsea Flower Show Gold Medallist: From Wildflower Bouquets to Neon accents...” House Beautiful. Accessed January 2025.
“Fire Resistant Landscaping: Working with Plants to Prevent Fire.” Western Fire Chiefs Association, September 2024. Accessed January 2025.
Gruetter, Tonelli, and Molly Lucille (2025, January). “20th Annual American Floral Trends Forecast.” Florists’ Review.
Marcoux, Steele (2024, May). “We Predict These 7 Garden Trends Will Surge in Popularity in 2025.” VERANDA. Accessed January 2025.
McIntosh, Olivia (2025, January). “10 Gardening Trends That Will Dominate in 2025, According to Experts.” Martha Stewart. Accessed January 2025.
“Monrovia | Garden Trends for 2025.” You Tube, uploaded by Monrovia Plants, September 17, 2024.
“Pinterest Predicts 2025.” Pinterest. Accessed January 2025.
Sherriffs, Catherine (2024, November). “Urban Gardening 101.” Garden Culture Magazine. Accessed January 2025.
Sweet, Rebecca. “2025 Trends in Garden Design.” Garden Design Magazine. Accessed January 2025.
Wells, Ellen. “Design School: How to Create a Modern Meadow Garden.” Monrovia. Accessed January 2025.