How to create a spooky Halloween planter!

As the leaves turn crisp and the air fills with the scent of pumpkin spice, Halloween approaches with its delightful mix of candy and creepiness. This time of year, we embrace the thrill of spooky decorations and the allure of all things goth. But why stop at just cobwebs and jack-o’-lanterns? Elevate your outdoor aesthetic with a Halloween planter that captures the essence of the season. Imagine a haunting arrangement filled with eerie, goth-inspired plants that not only enchant trick-or-treaters but also breathe life into your outdoor space. Join us as we embrace outdoor Halloween decoration DIY and put together a chillingly beautiful planter. This spooktacular autumn planter will have all the trick or treaters thinking twice about approaching your front door!

Creating your own Halloween planter can be a simple and fun activity that will add to your outdoor space. We’ll walk you through some ideas and offer some plant recommendations to get you started. Our focus will be on fall blooming perennials with a heavy nod towards interesting foliage and grasses. As the weather turns, we work with the colder temperatures and play to the strengths of perennials that present beautifully throughout the autumn season.

A few basic supplies

• Black urn style planter or old concrete fountain
• Soil
• Gardening gloves
• Small spade or shovel

Easy guide to spooktacular planter success

Here are a few guidelines to keep in mind while creating your DIY outdoor Halloween planter:

1. Add height with grasses
2. Maximize impact with dramatic and dark foliage
3. Combine different plant textures for added interest
4. Add in a bold pop of colour
5. Include spill over with plants to add some flow

Picking out perfect plants for frights and delights

Decisions, decisions! With so many plants to choose from, it can be difficult to get started. We’ve put together a list of some of our favourite spooky-looking plants that, when combined, are sure to give off a spine-chilling and gorgeously gothic aesthetic.

Plants:

• Viola Black (Violets)
• Actea (Cimicifuga) Hillside ‘Black Beauty’ (Bugbane)
• Heuchera ‘Midnight Rose’ (Coral Bells)
• Heuchera ‘Black Pearl’ (Coral Bells)
• Andropogon ‘Black Hawks’ (Coral Bells)
• Panicum ‘Blood Brothers’ (Red Switch Grass)
• Ophiopogon Nigrescens (Black Mondo Grass)
• Miscanthus ‘Ibiza’ (Fountain Grass)
• Imperata ‘Red Baron’ (Japanese Blood Grass)
• Sedum ‘Plum Dazzled’ (Autumn Stonecrop)
• Sedum ‘Night Embers’ (Autumn Stonecrop)
• Sempervivum (Hens & Chicks)
• Ajuga ‘Black Scallop’ (Bugleweed)
• Alcea rosea ‘Blacknight’ (Hollyhock)
• Heliopsis ‘Fire Twister’ (False Sunflower)
• Chrysanthemums
• Muehlenbeckia axillaris (Creeping Wire Vine)
• Lysimachia nummularia (Creeping Jenny)
• English Ivy
• Ornamental peppers
• Celosia (Cock’s Comb)
• Ornamental brassicas and flowering kale

Keeping our guidelines in mind, we’ve put together a planter with some of our favourite fall perennials:

1. Add height with grasses: Bewitched Black Mondo Grass and Menacing Miscanthus Ibiza
2. Maximize impact with dramatic and dark foliage: Blood Curdling Ajuga Black Scallop
3. Combine different plant textures for added interest: Ominous Ornamental Kale
4. Add in a bold pop of colour (if you want): Blood Red Ornamental Peppers
5. Spill over with plants to add flow: Creepy Creeping Wire Vine
6. For added interest, a few bone-white miniature pumpkins will do the trick.
7. Last of all, our skeletal friend gives this planter two thumbs up! Add some Halloween inspired décor like plastic spiders, webs or skeleton hands.

Eerie extras to make your planter pop

Want to boost the look of your spooky planter? Here are some fanciful extras that will elevate the level of detail and ominousness.

• Branches
• Rose hips
• Mist maker
• Moss (Spanish)
• Dried flowers or grasses
• Mini pumpkins on wooden skewer
• Dried seed pods
• Plastic spiders
• Skeleton hands
• Spider webs

Embracing the creepy spirit of the season and incorporating a love of plants makes this project fun and doable. By choosing the right plants, focusing on haunting colours, adding lots of texture and eerie, playful extras, you can create a spooky display that will delight both you and your Halloween visitors. The key is to let your imagination run wild. Get inspired by the plants you include and mix in unexpectedly eerie elements to set the perfect mood for the season. Happy planting (and haunting)!