Petunias are such great flowers for landscaping! Brimming with brilliant colors and a delicate smell, petunia flowers are great for adding a splash of color to your gardens. Landscaping with petunias is as easy as it gets, as long as you plant them in a sunny spot and give them water and well-fertilized soil.
Petunias spread quickly, and the show of color they present is breathtaking. They come in so many colors! From pink to red, white, blue, and purple, some are pink with a white border, and others are dark purple with spots. And, of course, the candy-striped petunias and even yellow ones.
Here are a few ideas to help you incorporate petunias into your yard’s landscape.
1. Grow Petunias in Containers
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One of the easiest ways to add color to your landscape is to create gorgeous containers filled with a mix of cascading petunia flowers. These are a popular annual flower (only a perennial where there’s no frost) to grab at the local greenhouse each spring to throw in containers for an instant pop of color.
You can mix contrasting colors or add a selection of similar shades depending on the effect you’re looking for.
2. Petunia Hanging Baskets
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Adding petunias to hanging baskets will give you a show of color throughout the summer. Taking them off the ground and closer to eye level or above makes it even easier to appreciate them.
Pair your petunias with geraniums, periwinkle, lobelia, and bright yellow African daisies for a dramatic look. Place these potted petunias in places you’ll enjoy them daily: by your front door, back porch, or even your mailbox.
3. Fill a Window Box
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Have you ever seen those gorgeous explosions of color in window boxes? You can plant the same color, like the ones above, or plant a variety of contrasting colors, like red and white, or pink and purple. A real show-stopper!
There’s a reason these are popular throughout Europe, making any home look beautiful and welcoming. See what other flowers look great in window boxes.
4. Include Them in Your Moon Garden
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Are you familiar with night gardens (aka moon gardens)? I remember visiting my grandparents in my early years and being greeted by these tiny white flowers that smelled amazing! They were Nicotiana, also known as tobacco plants.
Many petunias have this same property: their smell intensifies in the evening. You can create a night garden by your window or door and enjoy the incredible fragrance in the evening. One of the most fragrant petunias is the Thumbelina: they create double blooms in many colors.
5. Create a Border
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Create a garden edge to your backyard filled with petunias. They’ll keep blooming without much intervention from you: a very low-maintenance landscaping idea for busy people who love a well-maintained landscape without too much work.
Of course, it helps if you take an hour or so every week to deadhead: this will boost production and pay dividends for you.
6. Plant a Flower Bed (Anywhere!)
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Pentunias are perfect for adding more coverage to your flower beds. Tuck a few petunia plants between the perennials already there. They’ll add a pop of color and bloom profusely throughout summer.
The exciting flower bed above is made from large rocks and planted with layers of colorful flowers, including marigolds and petunias.
7. Create a Front Yard Centerpiece
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If you have a beautiful front (or back) yard piece you want to accentuate, put petunias in it! An old bird bath, a wooden cart, a large vintage pot, a wooden barrel- fill it and make it the center of the space.
If you have multiple fun spots to place flowers, make them all shine with these beautiful additions.
8. Fill a Tree Stump With Petunias
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If you have an old tree stump in your yard, you may want to use it to plant some wave petunias on top of it and let them cascade down the sides. It’s a simple way to make the stump feel like a purposeful spot in the yard, rather than an neglected afterthought.
9. Fill An Old Baby Stroller
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Get an old baby stroller from a yard sale and fill it with your favorite color of petunia flowers. This one has pink and candy stripe petunias. In this image above, a yellow rose planted next to the stroller gives a nice contrast.
Using The Many Petunia Color Combinations
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With the endless colors in which petunias bloom, there’s no shortage of color combinations for landscaping with petunias. From mixing red, white, and blue petunias in a hanging basket to adding two-tone colored flowers and spotlighting petunia flowers that are edged by a white border, you’ll be surprised at how many color patterns you’ll find you can use in your landscape.
If you like contrast, you’ll love mixing bright red and pure white petunias: such a beautiful combination! If you’d rather stay with one color, you can try to mix flowers in the same hues.
Special Petunias You Should Try
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Now that you’re planning to use lots of petunias in your landscape, there are a few petunia types you absolutely must try! Here are just a few:
- Wave petunias
- Petunia bravo
- Crazytunia
- Littletunia
- Evening scentsation
- Night skies petunias
What to Plant With Petunias
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While petunias are great on their own, they also love companionship.
Since petunias are low-growing, they’ll look good with taller plants as a backdrop. Plants to put behind petunias include:
- Snapdragons
- Delphiniums
- Alliums
- Lupines
- Black-eyed Susans
- Daisies
- Iris
I hope you now feel inspired to plant a rainbow garden filled with petnuias, and any other blooms that fit your landscaping dreams.
