Layering Your Landscape: Thrillers, Fillers & Spillers!
June 23, 2014 | By webadmin
A lush landscape with texture and color is the obvious goal for every design we create, but how do we do it? How do you choose the right plants for the space when you’re doing it yourself? It’s all about the right kind of layering. Have you heard about the “Thriller”, “Filler”, and “Spiller” concept for planting containers? Essentially, you can apply this same design concept to your own garden when selecting shrubs and perennials.
Every landscape should have plants that act as foundation and larger features for the garden (Thrillers), an intermediate layer that acts as the “filler”, and then lower growing plants to provide interest at the front of your beds (spillers).
Foundation plants: Thrillers
These plants make up the foundation features for your landscape. They are typically larger plants that create a backdrop for other smaller plants and may often have evergreen foliage to provide interest in winter. They may also be the shrubs you choose as foundation plantings around the home.
Texas sage, holly, abelia, loropetalum, wax myrtle and upright juniper all make excellent foundation specimens. Cleyera and evergreen viburnum varieties are great for shade. Under windows where you need shorter foliage plants, consider dwarf nandinas such as ‘Obsession’ or ‘Firepower’. Dwarf abelias, such as ‘Kaleidoscope’ and ‘Touch of Orange” are also excellent low growing choices for background foundation plants. When choosing background plants, choose evergreen varieties for year-round interest.
Intermediate Plants: Thrillers
Intermediate, or thriller plants, can be a mix of both low-growing shrubs, such as the dwarf nandina and abelia we already mentioned, and herbaceous perennials. Shasta daisies are a tough reliable perennial that blooms its head off in summer and takes the heat. Artemesia ‘Silver Mound’ makes a beautiful silver filling between foundation plants and blooming color. Roses, salvia and rosemary are also excellent fillers that provide bloom and foliage interested. For shady spots, look for Turk’s cap inland sea oats and oakleaf hydrangea.
Many ornamental grasses make the perfect filler plants. Dwarf Miscanthus ‘Adagio’ produces perfect 3-ft mounds of wispy foliage with wheat colored blooms. Blue lymegrass produces stunning blue-silver foliage is perfect paired with purple-leaved plants. Purple fountain grass is an excellent annual grass with gorgeous foliage.
Front of the border: Spillers
Shorter plants should be placed to the front of your beds or along pathways and walkways. Perfect “spillers” include scabiosa (pincushion flower), sedums, lantana and many more. (More shade perennials here.) Dwarf grasses such as Mexican feather grass and blue fescue are perfect for the edge of your bed. Don’t forget edibles: Thyme is the perfect “spiller” plant for the edge of beds or walkways.
Don’t forget to leave some space for annual color. Here in Dallas, we have several different seasons for annual color and you’ll want to leave some room to refresh your beds seasonally! Petunias, marigolds, sweet potato vine and pansies are all great choices.
Don’t forget to think about the seasons when you are choosing your plants, as we blogged about here. Or, give us a call and we can help you choose!
