This Outdoor Planter Hack Will Save You Time, Money & Sanity

Oh, and it'll keep your front porch looking fresh year-round.

Jenny Reimold shares how she uses a mix of faux and real flowers in her front porch planters to achieve full, colorful containers year-round.

How to Hack Front Porch Planters for Year-Round Color

Jenny Reimold shares how she uses a mix of faux and real flowers in her front porch planters to achieve full, colorful containers year-round.

Photo by: Shannon LeBlanc Photography

Shannon LeBlanc Photography

Audrey Hepburn once said, “To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.” Unfortunately, my 'tomorrows' are filled with ballet lessons, travel ball tournaments and loads of laundry mixed in with conference calls. Not only do I not have a garden, but I can barely keep the plants in my planters alive. But that doesn't keep me from longing for a gorgeous front porch like the ones I see on magazine covers.

So in an attempt to create flower-filled curb appeal with my unfortunately-black thumb, I employ a handy little trick or 'hack' as you might call it: I mix in faux floral stems with real, low-maintenance potted plants to achieve Pinterest-worthy porch planters that require very little upkeep. Yep, it's that easy. Keep reading to snag my tips and tricks to recreate this look at home and fool all your friends and neighbors into thinking you're a regular-old garden guru.

What You'll Need

  • planter of choice
  • any plant that has medium/large blooms and lots of leaves (we chose hydrangeas)
  • floral wire cutters
  • faux floral stems

Pick Your Planter

Jenny Reimold shares how she uses a mix of faux and real flowers in her front porch planters to achieve full, colorful containers year-round.

Recreate This Nashville Home's Gorgeous Front Porch

Jenny Reimold shares how she uses a mix of faux and real flowers in her front porch planters to achieve full, colorful containers year-round.

Photo by: Shannon LeBlanc Photgraphy

Shannon LeBlanc Photgraphy

Nantucket or Cape Cod-style planters complement traditional, coastal and farmhouse-style homes. Their classic design and timeless appeal can create a beautiful front porch with a lot of curb appeal. If your budget allows, look for the self-watering versions of these planters to make plant maintenance a breeze.

Choose Your Plant

Photo by: iStock

iStock

Select a plant that grows well according to the sunlight your porch receives. Some plants only like morning sun while others can withstand full sun throughout the day. Hydrangeas are my plant of choice, but any low-maintenance flowering plant will work.

More Ideas: 13 Can't-Kill Flowers

Select Faux Flowers

Photo by: Shannon LeBlanc Photography

Shannon LeBlanc Photography

When you’re adding faux stems to a living plant, it's important to select flowers that look natural and have variations of color within each bloom. Typically, these are the more expensive stems that generally can be found on their own row within the craft store. Avoid stems with any sort of sheen, iridescent appearance or those that are a solid color with no depth. I normally use four or five blooms in each planter.

Prep the Stems

Photo by: Shannon LeBlanc Photography

Shannon LeBlanc Photography

Use your wire cutters to cut the stems to varying 9"-12” lengths. Prior to cutting, fold the stem to size to ensure that it’s long enough to stick into the soil.

Arrange Your Blooms

Jenny Reimold shares how she uses a mix of faux and real flowers in her front porch planters to achieve full, colorful containers year-round.

How to Hack Your Front Porch Planters

Jenny Reimold shares how she uses a mix of faux and real flowers in her front porch planters to achieve full, colorful containers year-round.

Photo by: Shannon LeBlanc Photography

Shannon LeBlanc Photography

When placing stems into the living plant, tuck the blooms within the plant rather than on top of the leaves. You want the flowers to look like they would in nature, where the plant's leaves may cover or partially hide blooms. Start by placing blooms in a 2:00, 5:00 and 9:00 pattern around the planter with one additional bloom deeper in the center. Step back off your porch for another view and adjust or add blooms accordingly.

Enjoy!

Jenny Reimold shares how she uses a mix of faux and real flowers in her front porch planters to achieve full, colorful containers year-round.

How to Hack Front Porch Planters for Year-Round Color

Jenny Reimold shares how she uses a mix of faux and real flowers in her front porch planters to achieve full, colorful containers year-round.

Photo by: Shannon LeBlanc Photography

Shannon LeBlanc Photography

Put your gorgeous planters on display and don't stress if you miss a watering or two. As long as the leaves of the plant stay green, no one will ever know the blooms aren't real! This trick is especially handy if your plants are no longer blooming or if you're hosting an event or staging your home to sell and need full, lush planters on the fly.

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