Balconies and/or terraces are popular places to relax and enjoy the fresh air. Some prefer a sunny spot, others prefer the shade. This doesn't just happen to people, but also to plants in pots or balcony boxes. But finding the right flowers and green plants for every location is not an art. Here you will find a small selection.
Sun-loving balcony plants
If you have a south-facing balcony, then only sun-tolerant or sun-loving plants are suitable; others would be damaged. However, the selection in this area is quite large. Many Mediterranean herbs are suitable for this location and at the same time enrich your kitchen. Their scent spreads a holiday mood and ensures well-being.
Geraniums, Pelargoniums
- botanical name: Pelargonium
- Size/growth: upright plants 25 to 40 cm, hanging plants up to 30 cm high with hanging shoots up to 150 cm long
- Location: preferably south-facing balcony, southeast or southwest orientation is also possible
- Flower color: single or multicolored, white, pink, red and purple
- Flowering period: May to October
- Special features: Perennial plants, not hardy, also available as hanging plants, heavy feeders, thirsty, no waterlogging, POISONOUS!
Tip:
To ensure that your geraniums bloom long and profusely, you should clean the plants regularly (cut off dead shoots)
Bellflower
- botanical name: Campanula
- Size/growth: depending on the variety up to 2 m, dwarf species approx. 10 cm, different shapes
- Location: sunny to partially shaded
- Flower color: often violet or blue, white also possible
- Flowering time: between June and September
- Special features: reacts sensitively to moisture, also divide balcony plants about every six to ten years, if possible overwinter above + 10 °C, some varieties are hardy
Lavender
- Botanical name: Lavandula
- Size/growth: up to 1 m
- Location: ideally in full sun, west-facing balcony also possible, sheltered from the wind
- Flower color: purple, rarely white
- Flowering time: June to August, second flowering possible by pruning
- Special features: scent keeps mosquitoes away, real lavender is hardy, be sure to cut regularly, otherwise there is a risk of baldness
True to men
- Botanical name: Lobelia erinus
- Size/growth: usually 15 to 35 cm, hanging plants have shoots up to 1 m long
- Location likes sunny, also thrives in partial shade
- Flower color: mostly blue, sometimes violet or white eye in the middle
- Flowering period: May to September
- Special features: mostly perennial varieties, not frost hardy
Daisies
- botanical name: Leucanthemum
- Size/growth: 50 to 100 cm
- Location: sunny and likes to be very warm/hot, can also tolerate partial shade
- Flower color: white with yellow center, some varieties also yellow, pink or red
- Flowering period: May to October
- Special features: Always keep the soil moist, some varieties are hardy, thirsty, perennial plants
Petunias
- Botanical name: Petunia
- Size/growth: depending on the variety between 15 and 80 cm
- Location: the more sun, the better, sheltered from the wind
- Flower color: single or multicolored, also double, white, pink, red, violet or blue
- Flowering period: May to October
- Special features: also available as hanging plants (Pendula petunias), perennial but not frost hardy
Rosemary
- botanical name: Rosmarinus officinalis
- Size/Growth: Subshrub, up to 2 m high depending on variety and location
- Location: sunny, warm, sheltered from the wind
- Flower color: depending on the variety, white, pink, light blue or blue-violet
- Flowering time: March to May
- Special features: choose a small variety, attracts insects, tolerates heat well, tolerates drought better than waterlogging, frost hardy down to around -8 °C to -10 °C
Plants for semi-shaded and shady balconies
If your balcony is in partial shade, then you can also use sun-loving balcony plants. That depends on the actual sunlight. For a fully shaded balcony, it is better to use one of the following plants:
Hardworking Lieschen
- Botanical name: Impatiens walleriana
- Size/growth: approx. 15 to 30 cm
- Location: partially shaded to shady, does not tolerate full midday sun
- Flower color: white, pink, orange, red, violet, double or unfilled
- Flowering time: from late spring to autumn, overwinter frost-free
- Special features: sensitive to frost, only a few varieties are perennial
Fuchsia
- Botanical name: Fuchsia
- Size/Growth: mostly as a shrub, but also low varieties and standard stems possible
- Location: mostly partial shade or shade, some varieties can also tolerate sun
- Flower color: various combinations with red, white, pink, violet and orange, filled and unfilled
- Flowering time: from June until the first frost
- Special features: can do without sun, only a few varieties are hardy
Liver Balm
- Botanical name: Ageratum houstonianum
- Size/growth: 30 to 60 cm high
- Location: sunny to partially shaded
- Flower color: pink, violet, blue
- Flowering period: May to October
- Special features: more suitable for partial shade, basically perennial, not frost hardy, therefore usually considered an annual plant
bleeding heart
- Botanical name: Lamprocapnos spectabilis
- Size/growth: approx. 80 cm high, up to 60 cm wide
- Location: slightly shady to sunny, rather cool
- Flower color: pink or white
- Flowering period: May to August, in mild spring as early as April
- Special features: needs a period of frost for beautiful flowers
Clematis, Clematis
- Botanical name: Clematis
- Size/growth: depending on the variety, 2 to 3 m (large-flowered hybrids) or up to 12 m (Clematis montana)
- Location: shady at the base, preferably sunny above, preferably east or west balcony
- Flower color: almost all flower colors possible
- Flowering time: with clever combination several species from April to October, hybrids usually May to June
- Special features: choose a rather small variety, winter hardiness varies depending on the variety, sometimes up to -25 °C possible
Plants for large balconies or terraces
Even plants that require a relatively large amount of space are suitable as potted plants for the terrace or a large balcony. For example, you can bring a Mediterranean flair to your garden or balcony with a lemon or olive tree.
Angel Trumpet
- Botanical name: Brugmansia
- Size/growth: up to 5 m
- Location: ideally partial shade
- Flower color: white, yellow, orange or pink depending on the variety
- Flowering time: from May to autumn
- Special features: one of the most popular potted plants, perennial, not frost hardy, overwinter at + 10 °C to + 15 °C, POISONOUS!
Garden Hydrangea
- Botanical name: Hydrangea macrophylla
- Size/Growth: deciduous subshrub, up to 2 m
- Flower color: depending on pH value, white, bluish (acidic soil), reddish (alkaline soil)
- Flowering period: June to August
- Special features: conditionally hardy
Oleander
- Botanical name: Nerium oleander
- Size/growth: up to about 3 m high
- Flower color: white, yellow, pink or red
- Flowering period: early summer to autumn
- Special features: tolerates light frost down to around -5 °C, evergreen
Olive tree
- Botanical name: Olea europaea
- Size/Growth: depending on the variety up to 10 or 20 m, after about 5 to 7 years too big for planting in containers
- Location: warm, sheltered from the wind and as sunny as possible, but can also tolerate partial shade
- Flower color: white
- Flowering time: April to May, but only if the winter is frost-free
- Special features: can overwinter outside with appropriate protection, doesn't like moisture
Lemon tree
- Botanical name: Citrus limon
- Size/growth: depending on the variety between 80 cm and 4 m
- Location: full sun to partial shade
- Flower color: white
- Flowering time: possible all year round, but only at around the age of eight
- Special features: perennial, not frost hardy, bears flowers and fruits at the same time
Evergreen and hardy potted plants for the whole year
Not every plant lover wants to replant their pots or balcony boxes for every season. In this case, hardy plants are particularly recommended, even if they do not always bloom beautifully. A combination of perennial flowering plants with evergreen plants may be a solution. In this case, however, the planters should be large enough so that the roots do not freeze in winter. Alternatively, the pots and tubs can be wrapped with bubble wrap or similar insulating material in winter.
Family palm lily, garden yucca
- Botanical name: Yucca filamentosa
- Size/growth: clump-like growth, foliage up to 80 cm high, flower spike up to 2 m
- Location: sunny
- Flower color: white
- Flowering period: July to September
- Special features: frost hardy down to around -25 °C
Evergreen Candytuft
- Botanical name: Iberis sempervirens
- Size/growth: up to 30 cm
- Location: preferably sunny
- Flower color: white
- Flowering period: April to May
- Special features: grows like a mat, other species bloom pink, red or purple, excess nutrients tend to proliferate
Purple Bells
- botanical name: Heuchera
- Size/growth: 15 to 50 cm (small varieties)
- Flower color: white, pink or red depending on the variety
- Flowering period: May to July
- Special features: choose a small variety, large ones grow up to 90 cm high, very decorative leaf shapes and colors
Dwarf mountain pine, dwarf mountain pine
- Botanical name: Pinus mugo
- Size/growth: conical or spherical, bushy, 50 to 80 cm
- Location: sunny or partially shaded
- Flowers: yellow or red, cylindrical
- Flowering time: June and July
- Special features: grows very slowly, also tolerates wind and urban climate
