Create an exotic outdoor display

Give your garden a designer makeover with newly planted pots

Need to add some zing to your garden or patio? Containers are a great way of injecting style into a scheme.

What you'll need
• Terracotta pot, £29.99, Van Hage
• 1 x Cordyline 'Purpurea'
• 4 x Koeleria glauca
• 4 x Echeveria 'Pearl of Nuremberg'

What you do
1 Plant the cordyline in the centre of the pot.
2 Position each koeleria around the base of the cordyline, teasing out the leaves if necessary.
3 Fill in around the cordyline and koeleria with compost, leaving a hollow in each corner to plant the echeverias. Gently take each echeveria out of its pot – be careful as they break easily. Place one in each corner of the container. Cover with bark chippings, pebbles or slate – we used green slate scree.

Ideal Home Tip
This is a drought-resistant arrangement that can survive without regular watering. It likes a sunny position. The echeverias will have to be overwintered, so will need to be brought inside at the first sign of frost.

For more great container planting ideas, buy this month's Ideal Home magazine

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