Arthur Parkinson's Potted Garden Essentials

If you’ve ever paused by a beautifully planted terrace and wondered how such abundance can flourish from a collection of pots, the answer often lies in a thoughtful balance - choosing the right plants, nurturing them in the right soil, and understanding what perennials need to return and thrive, year after year.

In his new course, Creating a Perennial Paradise in Pots, garden designer and author Arthur Parkinson visits one of his favourite garden centres, Burford Garden Co., to share what he would choose to create a potted garden that returns and flourishes, season after season. Inspired by the course, Arthur and the team at Create Academy have thoughtfully gathered a selection of their favourite plants, pots, and tools - everything you need to begin creating your own perennial paradise in pots, all from the comfort of home, with gentle guidance at every step.

If there is one plant Arthur returns to time and again, it is the rose. Not the more formal hybrid teas of structured planting, but the softer, more generous shrub roses, loose in form, richly fragrant, and abundantly in bloom - so beautifully associated with the enduring romance of David Austin gardens.

‘The reason David Austin is so renowned is that every single rose in their range has taken them at least 13 years to breed and trial for health, vigour, and flower production," Arthur explains. "And in terms of perfume, there's nothing more beautiful.’

When it comes to planting in pots, Arthur is instinctively drawn to the warmer palette of apricot and peach tones - richer, more nuanced, and, in his view, carrying an even deeper fragrance than their pink counterparts.

As an English Musk hybrid rose with medium-sized, cupped rosette flowers of a perfect peach colouring, this free-flowering rose produces few thorns, it has good disease resistance and a lovely medium-strength fragrance, making it a great option for your first potted garden.

Flowering twice a season, from attractively red-tipped buds, Rosa Dame Judi Dench (Ausquaker)appropriately produces a show-stopping mass of colour from strong, arching stems. The large blooms comprise many ruffled petals which open out to create a rosette form exposing a pretty button eye.

For those drawn to softer, cooler tones, this rose offers a quiet charm. A compact, upright shrub, it produces delicate soft-pink blooms with a gentle yet distinctive myrrh fragrance. With excellent disease resistance and a reliable habit of repeat flowering, it is a wonderfully dependable choice for container planting.

Arthur firmly believes that a potted garden is shaped as much by its supporting cast as its centrepieces. These perennials and shrubs may not demand attention, but they quietly provide the structure, longevity, and seasonal rhythm that allow a container garden to truly flourish.

A wonderful companion for roses, this upright, shrubby salvia brings both colour and quiet purpose to the planting. Its bi-coloured flowers open in warm shades of yellow and orange, gently softening to salmon tones as the season cools. The aromatic grey-green foliage not only adds texture, but also attracts pollinators and offers a natural, protective benefit to nearby roses.

One of Arthur’s most trusted and robust patio perennials, Alchemilla mollis is loved for its soft, scalloped leaves and frothy, cloud-like sprays of foliage. It has a gentle habit of self-seeding into the smallest of spaces, softening the edges of paving with its delicate, airy blooms.

“The acid-green stems make a wonderful cut flower, too,” Arthur notes, adding yet another quiet pleasure to this enduring favourite.

Buddlejas may have fallen out of favour for a time - once seen flourishing across post-war London in places left untended - but their quiet virtues are easily rediscovered. Arthur, for one, has never lost his appreciation: “I personally absolutely love them.”

This more compact variety offers softly scented, lilac-purple flower spikes that draw in pollinators, while fitting beautifully into smaller spaces. Once established, buddlejas are wonderfully low-maintenance, returning reliably year after year with ease and generosity.

“Figs are wonderfully suited to life in pots,” Arthur notes, and this dwarf variety is perfectly adapted for just that. With its beautifully architectural foliage and the promise of at least one crop of fruit each year, it thrives in a sunny terrace or sheltered courtyard.

A plant that more than earns its place on form alone - before the fruit even begins to appear.

It is often said that a garden is only as good as its soil. “The backbone of any successful garden, especially one in pots, is caring for and nourishing the soil,” Arthur reflects. “Understanding it, and tending to it well, is essential for a garden filled with flowers and abundance.”

Containers, by their nature, can be a little more demanding. Unlike plants in open ground, those in pots rely entirely on what they are given, with no access to the wider ecosystem beneath them. What you choose to place in the pot, and how you care for it, makes all the difference.

Arthur’s compost of choice, and one he recommends without hesitation. A carefully balanced blend of fine bark, wood fibre, coir, loam, and sand, enriched with John Innes No.1 to support the first weeks of growth.

Crucially, it is peat-free, something Arthur considers essential. “Look out for the Melcourt range,” he suggests. “It’s a really excellent peat-free mix, thoughtfully blended to give your plants the very best start in life.”

“If I were on a budget and could choose just one thing,” Arthur says, “it would always be an organic farmyard manure, used as a top dressing for shrubs and roses.”

An all-natural fertiliser, crafted from 100% British wool, it is designed to enrich the soil, retain moisture, and release nutrients slowly over time. Arthur is a great advocate for wool in container gardening, valuing its natural ability to support healthy growth - qualities that Wooltiliser brings beautifully into the soil itself.

Perfect for smaller spaces where every bit of compost is to be cherished, this thoughtfully designed composter makes the most of what you have. Handmade from galvanised steel, it feeds organic matter directly back into the soil with minimal waste. A durable and quietly considered piece, it brings a simple, accessible approach to composting, even in more compact gardens.

Pots are not just the foundation of a container garden; they can also add style and colour to your space. Arthur's aesthetic leans towards the traditional and tactile, with terracotta, aged finishes, and materials that look better with time.

Arthur is particularly fond of the timeless character and graceful form of these raw terracotta pots.Designed by Bergs Potter and inspired by Her Majesty Queen Margrethe II of Denmark, affectionately known as Daisy, their understated elegance makes them a beautiful centrepiece, whether placed indoors or out.

Crafted from unglazed clay, they allow for natural aeration, helping roots to breathe and thrive. For the warmer months, Arthur suggests lining the pots with wool to gently retain moisture - an additional, thoughtful touch for healthier planting.

Hand-thrown and carefully aged, these Burford terracotta pots lend an immediate sense of quiet, timeworn character to even the newest planting. Perfect for herbs, bulbs, or smaller flowering varieties, they settle effortlessly into their surroundings.

The kind of pot that feels as though it has always belonged, bringing a gentle sense of history to the garden from the very first day.

Arthur often says his favourite view from the house isn’t the roses or the figs, but the birdbath. “It’s like a songbird spa,” he reflects.

These thick, frost-resistant terracotta saucers, hardy down to -20°C, serve beautifully as birdbaths or simple watering spots for hedgehogs, inviting gentle wildlife into the garden. Equally at home outdoors or resting on an indoor windowsill, they bring a quiet sense of life and movement to any space.

Some of the simplest, but most effective pieces to have in your garden shed at all times, as you never know when they'll come in handy.

Not every garden has the convenience of a nearby tap. These thoughtfully made watering cans offer a simple, sustainable solution, crafted from 100% recycled materials and produced using wind power.

Available in soft lime green or graphite, they are as practical as they are pleasing to use - an everyday essential, quietly well considered.

“Wool is almost nature’s magical ingredient for container gardening,” Arthur notes. “It insulates against both heat and cold, while helping plants retain precious moisture.”

These wool liners embody that quiet ingenuity - offering natural insulation, moisture retention, and gentle frost protection, all while sitting beautifully within the pot. As they slowly break down, they release nutrients back into the soil, continuing their work in the most unassuming way. A simple addition, doing something rather remarkable.

“If you haven’t got gloves, you’ll need a good nail brush,” Arthur says.

Made in England and thoughtfully presented in plastic-free packaging, this exfoliating walnut-shell soap is paired with a natural-bristle nail brush, perfect for those who prefer to work bare-handed and truly feel the soil. A small, quietly satisfying indulgence at the end of a day spent in the garden.

There's something so satisfying about a good book, and having a helping hand in gardening is always a good idea.

This is the ideal companion for Arthur’s course. A follow-up to his bestselling book The Flower Yard, this book focuses on what to grow through the seasons, documenting each one through his own photography and sharing his favourite varieties and planting tips. Signed copies are available while stocks last.

Be inspired by thirty garden projects from one of today’s most respected designers, where traditional English garden style is thoughtfully balanced with a deep commitment to biodiversity. Beautifully presented and quietly practical, the ideas within translate effortlessly to smaller, potted spaces—offering inspiration that feels both achievable and enduring.

Everything shared here is drawn from Arthur’s new course, Creating a Perennial Paradise in Pots, where he guides you from the foundations of planting and soil care through to visiting gardens that demonstrate how beauty, abundance, and ease can exist in quiet harmony.

At its heart, the course is a gentle invitation to reconnect with the garden in a more meaningful way. “I want to be able to sit in the garden, enjoy it, and feel embraced by the plants,” Arthur reflects. “We need to get our hands back into the soil, to smell the plants, to love them, and to truly notice the seasons as they unfold.”