Mad Gal,
This isn't exactly what you asked for but on September 5th of this year I took my camera along when I went out on errands and photographed all of the planters in one community that I thought had done a nice job. What I like about this particular arrangement of annuals and perennials is that they really held up throughout the season and into the fall. Let me know if you would like to see more. kt

Browallia is one of my favorites and it was hard for me to find last spring. It is available in both blue and white, starts slowly but really kicks in in late June/July and is a nonstop performer right through until hard frost. Lovely combined with Impatiens (Blue and Salmon is handsome!). Fushias; I don't do well with them personally, but have friends that have handsome specimens. Begonias are lovely, too. And you could use good ol' Lamium very successfully and then move it into your borders at the end of the season. Some years ago we had a lovely combination of Begonias, Browallia, and Lamium.

Coleus is easy to grow from seed and makes a great foliage filler. I grow from pale lime green & white to almost black, with lots of red variations in between. It also starts so easily from cuttings, you can take some snips from any of your friends overwintering theirs.

drippy...

I was just reading the initial post and was about to post coleus when I see you beat me to it! :-) It may not start from seed, but I agree with drippy, you can buy a few plants in early spring and start cuttings. The colors are the most dramatic I think you can find in the shade and will definitely show up from the street.

You can add some of the other ideas to the planters to enjoy up close. Cane begonias do very well and are usually much more dependable for wintering over.

I agree with the Lamium..what about Helichrysum, I can't remember if that does well in shade. Both of which are a good contrasting color and trail.

I am having trouble deciding what I am putting in my containers next year too.

:-)

Coleus was also my first thought. My second thought is begonias - any begonias. Obviously the tuberous ones probably provide the biggest color splash, but one runs into the overwintering question again.

Nonetheless......

And if one wants a color "filler" sweet alyssum easily grows in shade as long as it isn't really heavy. It will reseed in a zone 6 environment.

Oh, pansies and the other assorted Viola species & cultivars will work, too.

I have found that petunias do fine in my northeast windowboxes. Not sure if that bit of morning sun is mandatory.

Some of the new colorful coleus do need sun to do well.

york rose...I had forgotten about the tuberous begonias. Those would certainly give a big splash of color. If you can replace the bulbs every year, it might be worthwhile to add a couple to the boxes every year. I think I am going to add that to my list for the spring for an east facing location!

I also have had the alyssum bloom in part shade at least and violas are a great idea too. Mine kept flowering a pretty long time last year and being in shade they might last longer yet.

Wendy, you are right, the new ones do perform much better in at least part sun. I guess it would be an experiment.

Glad you asked the question, mad gallica.. :-)
pm2

This may work. You can always trade out the trailing Impatiens for a different Lobelia. Not all from seed, but it beats another year of impatiens :-)

This thrived on the NNE corner of the house with dappled sun for a few hours.

Martie

Here is a link that might be useful: {{gwi:174668}}

I also note the Fuchsia in that image, martieinct. If the window box stays wet enough, Fuchsias might work, too (but they require a really dependable source of moisture, I think).

I can't resist stopping by *again*. There are volumes of container gardening books that have very creative suggestions on how to meet the individual needs of container plants. kt

Martie...pretty coleus in your pic too. :-) Looks familiar but can't remember the name of it.

:-)

Lots of great coleus plants at this site, and they ship them too. Check their availability list.

Claire

Here is a link that might be useful: Many coleus (colei?, coleuses?)

Mad Gallica -- What are you thinking so far???

H2O: Yes, I watered this container every day and was careful to combine plants that could take that much moisture.

Coleus: A plant friend ID'd it as "French Lace" but I just got it 'cause I love the look. Had NO luck with cuttings, though :-(

Tuberous Begonias are what got me out of "flat annual" flower gardening and into the real thing. Be careful of what you buy. There's a huge difference in tissue stock sources. Spend money only with someone dependable (link below is a great start).

Great thread!!

Martie

Here is a link that might be useful: Great Tuberous Begonia Source

Don't worry, I'm paying attention.

Last year, the planting was pink calla lilies, Limelight coleus, trailing lobelia, and some impatiens thrown in for flowers. The coleus got taller than I would have liked, so I let it die off this year. What I'd like is a green and white coleus to replace the caladium 'White Christmas' that I can't overwinter. I'm afraid that the pink/red variegated coleus would clash with the brick.

Right now I'm leaning towards begonias. Those I can overwinter, so I'm willing to spend money on them. The browallias sound interesting, but I'm having major surgery in February, and have no faith that the rest of the family will tend seedlings for me.

Since I starting using water crystals in the window boxes, watering hasn't been an issue. The biggest problem is remembering that the boxes are under the eaves, so have to be watered even if it rains.

The web site I posted has what it calls trailing sun coleus, which dangle rather than grow up. This should solve the too tall problem. They have a green and gold coleus.

Claire

Here is a link that might be useful: Trailing sun coleus

More coleus:

buttercream lanceleaf coleus

Claire

Am I missing something, or are sun coleus sun plants?

The shade is very much the tricky part. I've been through several container gardening books, and if they have two shade examples, that's a lot.

This is all new to me, but the website says:

"Culturally, however, there are some big differences between seed & cutting propagated coleus.

Seed grown strains tend to do best out of direct sun, produce flowers readily & decline if allowed to flower.

Cutting-grown cultivars, often called sun coleus, color-up better with at least some direct sun, tend not to bloom much (although some cultivars do have a greater proclivity toward blooming than others) & are usually a little more cold tolerant."

Claire

Here is a link that might be useful: Sun coleus info page

Hello again...

I don't always find enough choices for shade either. For containers I have two places that help me think about what will go where and how it is going to look. Proven Winners website and Flower Fields website. Although the choices on these two websites might end up being the most expensive annuals at the local nurseries in the spring, sometimes there is something that gives you an idea of something else you can afford, or you can use some of the more common plants to fill out the container and buy an expensive one to give it that extra something you need.

Flower Fields...www.theflowerfields.com

Proven Winners Link below.

Hope that helps..

:-)
pm2

Here is a link that might be useful: Proven Winners

Now that I think of it, I bet dwarf Hostas would work, too.