Any of the carpet type junipers, Microbiota decussata, the spreading (prostrate or repandent) types of yews. Any might need some pruning attention in time, as likely to get overly large for that sort of container planting. I grow Picea abies 'Gold Drift' as a sprawling groundcover but it is a little sparse to be of good effect in this situation........too much space between the internodes.

Yes - for a situation that small you would really need a miniature kind.

are you talking about planting the conifer in the pot???

winter drainage might be a problem ...

not sure the microbiota will thrive in her zone ....

you should be looking in the J horizontalis group ....

ken

Juniperus horizontalis 'Golden Carpet'

two plants on a hillside ... interesting seasonal color change .... oooww ...

one plant above a brick wall ... wish i had more current pix on this one.. it grew to the wall edge ... over it.. down the wall ... and into the lawn ....

Juniperus horizontalis 'Mother Lode'

at hidden lakes ... probably 3 plants ...

ken, the common name for the Microbiota is Siberian cypress........it will tolerate a very cold climate. And that type of container is somewhat misleading as they generally do not have a solid base as with most upright containers - they kind of lay along the ground with open access to the soil below. They only look like a toppled container.

Thanks for the
suggestions!

The pot would be one
made of polyurethane, sliced at ground level, so that the plant is actually
planted in the ground or only slightly raised. The elevation of the pot
could also be easily adjusted for a higher drop as the plant grows.

The plant would
be pruned to about 1' width at the mouth of the pot and grow several feet
in length for the 'flow', the 'flow' would naturally broaden to more than
1'. In other words, plant size would not be very small.

Keep the suggestions
coming :-)

I know every situation is different, but I haven't found the microbiota a very satisfactory plant from year to year. The 3 of the 5 I have left are good, other two became diseased over the first two years needed to be removed. The others are huge (waaaay too big for a pot), perhaps 5-7 feet acrossvery . Everu year I have to lift the increasingly thick and heavy branches to clean out dead branches. I mean big dead branches, not just a some annual needle shedding. I've heard the more upright form is less disease susceptable, but then it's not the same groundcover effect.

The minimum viewing
distance for this feature is normally about 12-15'. My whole family loves the Microbiota
decussata for its 'green feathers' but by the same token, the 'green feathers'
may interfere with the illusion of a smooth 'flow' at that viewing distance,
not sure.

In
any case, I am looking for the finest textured and densest foliage, a Picea glauca 'Conica' horizontalis would be good :-)

I don't know if this would work. Thuja occidentals 'Mossy'

Frank

Juniperus procumbens 'nana' looks like it can work

OPs concurrent post in the perennial forum

http://forums2.gardenweb.com/discussions/4341422/overflowing-flowers-from-a-toppled-pot?n=6

Thanks, as I pointed out in the perennial forum, I will be/am looking for an equivalent effect with conifers, hence the posting here. So far at least, neither conifer nor perennial are as attractive as the annual Alyssum from an overall perspective. Have not made a decision yet.

I think that the conifers will all get way too big and keeping them the appropriate size means pruning that will eventually expose too much wood, and undermine the 'flowing'. The only conifer that I know that would have a chance of being soft and diminutive enough is Microcachrys tetragona, which is not hardy in your zone. It's an alpine, so not surprising that its stature is much more delicate than the others suggested. I'm not a big fan of Alyssum generally, but it has its uses, and one of them is your application. I might try some succulents as alternatives - lots of very low, 'flowing' types, or even something more robust like Sedum morganianum (burro tails).