20+ Best Plants for Window Boxes All Year Round

As Spring is approaching, it’s time to refresh your home. Window boxes offer a fantastic way to enhance your home's curb appeal and bring a touch of nature to your living space. Grow flowers that symbolize new beginnings and give your home a vibrant makeover. Choose the right plants for window boxes and transform an ordinary window into a vibrant focal point throughout the year.

There is a list of good flowers for window boxes. From small window box plants to low-maintenance plants for window boxes, you can create stunning displays that reflect your style and brighten your home. Meanwhile, we’ll demonstrate how to design window boxes and how to care for these plants for window boxes.

Low Maintenance Window Box Plants

Potato Vine: Potato vine is easy to care for and can thrive in full sun to shade. It adds a beautiful spiller effect with its bright green foliage.
Calibrachoa: Calibrachoa is a low-maintenance flower that blooms nonstop without deadheading. It adapts well to different conditions and comes in many colors
Sedum: Sedum is a low-growing, creeping succulent that requires minimal watering. It's perfect for hanging baskets or window boxes.
Convolvulus cneorum: This plant features evergreen silvery leaves and white flowers. It is reasonably drought-resistant and hardy.
Thyme: Thyme comes in various leaf colors and is low maintenance. It can thrive in well-drained soil and partial sun

Drought-Tolerant Window Boxes Plants

Marigolds: These cheerful flowers are resilient and have deep root systems that allow them to access moisture from deeper soil layers. Their thick, waxy leaves reduce water loss, making them ideal for sunny spots.
Verbena: Known for attracting butterflies, verbena has a robust root system that efficiently absorbs water. Its fine foliage minimizes water loss, allowing it to thrive in hot, sunny environments.
Cosmos: These elegant flowers are hardy and thrive in dry conditions due to their deep root systems. Their airy foliage helps minimize water loss, making them suitable for poor, dry soils.
Rosemary: A versatile herb, rosemary has needle-like leaves with a waxy coating that reduces water loss. Its deep roots help it survive with minimal watering, making it perfect for kitchen window boxes.
Sedum: A drought-resistant succulent that adds texture and color, sedum is ideal for sunny locations and requires minimal maintenance.

Small Window Box Plants

Violas: Small, colorful flowers in shades of blue, purple, yellow, white, and pink. Violas are easy to grow, drought-tolerant, and bloom continuously in cooler weather.
Geraniums: Zonal and ivy-leaf geraniums are suitable due to their shallow root systems. They come in various colors, require minimal maintenance, and prefer well-drained soil. They thrive in partial sun but can tolerate full sun to full shade.
Bacopa: With its delicate, star-shaped flowers and trailing habit, Bacopa is perfect for adding a soft touch to window boxes. It thrives in full sun to partial shade and is low-maintenance.
Sweet Alyssum: A delicate, fragrant flower with tiny clusters of white, pink, lavender, or purple blooms that blossom in full sun or partial shade and well-drained soil. It adds a delicate, low-growing texture to garden beds and window boxes and blooms in spring and throughout the summer.
Impatiens: Ideal for shady spots, impatiens have small root systems and come in a dazzling array of colors. They require no deadheading and fill a window box nicely on their own or combine it with taller coleus and draping Creeping Jenny.

Succulent Window Box Plants

Aloe: Varieties like Aloe 'Black Beauty' or Aloe aristata provide height and structure. They are hardy and can tolerate various conditions, making them ideal for window boxes.
Echeveria: Known for their rosette shape and variety of colors, Echeverias are perfect for adding visual interest. They thrive in bright light and well-draining soil.
Portulacaria afra: Also known as Elephant Food, this succulent is great for adding a lush green touch and can handle drought conditions well.
Rosularia chrysantha: This lesser-known succulent has a compact growth habit and produces lovely yellow flowers, making it an interesting choice for window boxes.

Trailing Window Boxes Plants

Verbena: This perky, draping plant is well-suited for window boxes in full to part sun. It comes in many colors and is generally not fussy as long as it gets regular water.
Sweet Potato Vine: This fast-growing plant is known for its lush, heart-shaped leaves in vibrant colors like maroon, purple, and chartreuse. It cascades beautifully over the edges of window boxes and thrives in full sun to partial shade. Regular pruning helps maintain its shape and prevents it from overtaking other plants.
Creeping Jenny (Lysimachia): With its bright chartreuse foliage, Creeping Jenny is perfect for adding a pop of color. It thrives in both sun and partial shade, making it versatile for various light conditions. Its dense growth habit creates a lovely cascading effect.
Trailing Petunias: These sun-loving plants produce abundant blooms throughout the growing season. Their trailing habit makes them ideal for window boxes, providing vibrant colors and a cascading effect.
Calibrachoa (Million Bells): This prolific bloomer produces small, petunia-like flowers in various colors. Its trailing nature makes it perfect for creating full, cascading displays in sunny window boxes.

Perennials Window Box Plants

Erigeron (Mexican Fleabane): This tough perennial produces abundant flowers for months and fits well in smaller spaces like window boxes.
Miniature Roses: Compact and charming, miniature roses can thrive in containers and add elegance with classic blooms.
Daylily (Hemerocallis): Known for its resilience, daylilies bloom from late spring to early summer and come in various colors. They are low-maintenance and adapt well to different temperatures.
Lavender: This aromatic plant thrives in hot, dry conditions and has an extensive root system to stay hydrated. Its narrow leaves covered with fine hairs also help reduce water loss.
Ivy Geranium: These trailing plants are great for adding a cascading effect to your window box while producing colorful blooms throughout the seasons.

Innovative Ideas on Window Box Design

After choosing what to plant in the window box, let’s learn some innovative ideas on window box design.

Window Box Design

Tiered Window Boxes System

Use a tiered system to create a multi-layered effect. This allows for varied heights and more plants in a compact space.

Vertical Gardening

Integrate a vertical gardening design or establish a standing window box. To achieve this, stack several boxes or use wall-mounted planters. This maximizes space and adds a stunning visual.

Themed Plantings

Create themed boxes (e.g., culinary herbs, pollinator-friendly plants, or seasonal flowers) to give a distinct look and purpose.

Incorporate Edibles

Combine ornamental plants with edible ones like strawberries, herbs, or salad greens for a beautiful and functional window box.

Lighting Elements

Integrate solar lights or LED grow lights into your window boxes to help plant growth and create a magical nighttime ambiance.

Color Schemes

Choose a specific color palette for your plants to create a cohesive and striking visual effect. Consider complementary or analogous color schemes.

Mixed Materials

Use a combination of materials like wood, metal, and ceramic for an eclectic and textured design. This can enhance the aesthetic appeal.

Hanging Window Boxes

Suspend window boxes from brackets or chains for a floating effect, adding dimension and interest.

Self-Watering Features

Design window boxes with a self-watering system to ensure plants receive consistent moisture, reducing maintenance.

Seasonal Rotation

Plan for seasonal changes by designing boxes that can be easily rotated with different plants, allowing for year-round interest.

Artistic Touches

Add decorative elements like painted stones, sculptures, or personalized signs to enhance the overall design.

Layered Planting

Plant taller plants in the back and shorter ones in the front to create depth and ensure all plants are visible.

Seasonal Decor

Change decorations according to seasons or holidays (like pumpkins for fall or evergreen branches for winter) to keep them fresh.

How to Care for Window Box Plants?

Unlike traditional garden beds, window boxes have limited soil volume and can dry out quickly. If you want to keep the beauty of window box plants, you can learn special tips to care for window box plants.

Here, we’ve collected several useful tips:

Choose the Right Plants

Select plants that are suited to your climate and the amount of sunlight the window box receives (full sun, partial shade, or full shade).

Enough Sunlight

Observe your plants and adjust their position to ensure they can receive the right amount of sunlight throughout the day. If there is no sufficient light, consider using supplemental lighting.

Proper Soil

Use high-quality potting soil that provides good drainage and aeration. Avoid using garden soil, as it may compact and hinder plant growth.

Watering

Frequency: Check soil moisture regularly; most window box plants prefer consistently moist soil but not soggy. Water when the top inch feels dry. Also, you can water thoroughly until it drains from the bottom, ensuring all roots receive moisture.

Fertilization

Use a balanced, slow-release fertilizer or a liquid fertilizer every few weeks during the growing season (spring and summer) to provide essential nutrients.

Pruning and Deadheading

Regularly prune dead or yellowing leaves and spent flowers (deadheading) to encourage new growth and maintain a tidy appearance.

Pest Control

Monitor for pests like aphids, spider mites, and whiteflies. Use insecticidal soap or neem oil for treatment if needed.

Mulching

Add a layer of mulch to help retain moisture, suppress weeds, and maintain a stable soil temperature.

Seasonal Adjustments

Change plants seasonally for variety and to ensure they thrive in appropriate conditions. Consider using frost-resistant plants in colder months.

Drainage

Ensure your window box has adequate drainage holes to prevent water accumulation, which can lead to root rot.

Protection from Harsh Weather

In extreme weather (heavy rain, strong winds, frost), consider bringing window boxes indoors or covering them to protect your plants.

Regular Inspection

Routinely check for signs of stress, such as wilting or discoloration, to address potential issues early.

Conclusion

In conclusion, window box plants can can enhance your indoor space, adding color, texture, and life throughout the year. There are a range of options you can try - from vibrant annuals to resilient perennials and even edible plants for window boxes. By considering factors such as sunlight, climate, and personal aesthetics, you can create stunning arrangements that not only enhance your home’s curb appeal but also provide joy and satisfaction as you nurture them.