🪴 Screening in Planters – A Practical Guide
Create instant privacy, soften boundaries, or define outdoor spaces — all without digging. This guide shows you how to use planters effectively for screening with bamboo and evergreen shrubs.
🌿 Why Use Planters for Screening?
- Ideal for patios, balconies, roof terraces, or areas where digging isn’t possible
- Keeps plants contained — perfect for bamboo
- Lets you move or rearrange your screening if needed
- Adds structure and greenery to hard landscapes
📏 Choosing the Right Planters
Size matters more than material.
🔹 Minimum recommended size:
- Height & width: at least 45cm (for both bamboo and shrubs)
- Troughs for screening: ~100cm (L) x 45cm (W) x 45cm (H) — fits two bamboo or hedge plants comfortably
🔹 Suitable materials:
Bigger is better: Larger containers offer more root space, better insulation, and fewer watering demands.
- ✅ Plastic, resin, wood, stone, steel, zinc
- 🚫 Avoid terracotta — it dries out too quickly and may crack in frost
🌱 Best Plants for Screening in Planters
🎍 Bamboo
- Best for height in limited spaces
- Fast-growing and architectural
- Top choices: Bisset Bamboo, Golden Crookstem, Black Bamboo (slower but elegant)
🌳 Evergreen Shrubs
- Great for structured screening and year-round foliage
- Best for neat, formal planting
- Top choices:
- Portuguese Laurel – compact and tidy
- Photinia Red Robin – colourful and upright
- Elaeagnus x Ebbingei – tough and coastal-friendly
🧱 Layout Options
1️⃣ Modular Troughs
- Line up multiple identical planters
- Offers flexibility — easy to move or space out
- Example: 3 troughs at 1m each = 3m of screening
2️⃣ Custom-Built Continuous Planters
- Use timber, sleepers, or decking boards to build one long trough
- More economical over large spans
- You define the shape and size
- Always drill adequate drainage holes
💧 Planting & Maintenance Tips
- Fill with a mix of compost and topsoil
- Add grit or perlite for drainage
- Water regularly — containers dry out quickly, especially in summer
- Feed every spring with slow-release fertiliser, and supplement with liquid feed during the growing season
- Add mulch to help retain moisture
🌬️ Stability & Positioning
- For exposed areas, choose heavier planters or weigh them down with gravel at the base
- Place against walls or fences for added protection from wind
- Rotate or rearrange for even sunlight and growth
📝 Final Advice
Planter-based screening gives you flexibility, beauty, and privacy — all without breaking ground. Just remember: water, feed, and size your containers generously for best results.
Ready to get started? Explore our full range of Bamboo and Evergreen Hedges perfect for planters.