New Zealand Flax (Phorium)
“This is a big plant that doesn’t grow well in a garden, but it’s great for pots. I love it because of its rainbow colours. Plant around it with purple foliage, flowers with texture, pink flowers, maybe a trailer. It lends itself to all sorts of looks because it has a beautiful wide, strap-shaped blade.”
King Tut Grass (Cyperus Papyrus)
“Essentially a water plant, this one just kills me in the summer when the flowers suddenly pop out of the little umbrella-like heads. It’s reedy and soft and has a lovely flow to it. I companion it with one of my favourite hanging plants.”
Climbing Snapdragon (Asarina)
“This one has a bell-shaped flower that looks similar to fuchsia, but it’s a little different. It’s a deep-purple colour and it’s just stunning in a pot, on its own, or [with] a few old-fashioned flowers like zinnias or asters.”
Cup-and-Saucer Vine (Cobaea Scandens)
“I have a privacy screen on my deck and this pink, purple and white flowering plant just scrambles all over it. I’ll do it alone in a pot because I love how it climbs up the eight-foot trellis that leans on my screen. My dog Marigold thinks it’s all just for her; she loves the shade.”
African Daisies
“I’m a big fan of this daisy that opens and closes with the sun. It loves my sunny deck where I pot it with English ivy. And I like to surprise people, so I’ll add in herbs like sage, parsley, maybe basil, for their texture.”