Outdoor planters are versatile elements that transform any outdoor space. Whether you’re designing balconies for an apartment complex or an expansive commercial landscape plan, planters make it easy to add lush and vibrant greenery.

In this guide, you’ll find everything you need to know about outdoor planters — from various use cases and design inspiration to considerations for selecting the right planter size and material.

Outdoor Planter Uses

Outdoor planters are more than just vessels for holding plants. They’ve become versatile design elements that can transform any outdoor space.

Outdoor Planters for Commercial Buildings

Developer Tishman Speyer and the design team from Kim Hoyt Architect & Landscape Architect P.C. called on PureModern to add planters for two terraces at the iconic Rockefeller Plaza in midtown Manhattan.

Ornamental trees in PurePots Fiberglass Tapered Cylinders add vertical interest and soften the surrounding concrete view, while Modern Elite Aluminum Custom Planters flank the perimeter of the terraces.

Outdoor Planters for Cafes

A well-landscaped exterior creates a positive first impression for guests and can elevate a cafe’s brand. Outdoor planters are becoming a very popular way to enhance a cafe’s curb appeal and make the cafe more inviting to guests.

Using Outdoor Planters for Hotels

Hotels utilize outdoor planters to create interest for lobbies and patios, define spaces, and enhance brand perception and ambiance.

Large outdoor planters can be strategically located to create small vignettes within a large space, like the DoubleTree by Hilton did in the image below.

Using Outdoor Planters in Parking Lots

High-quality commercial parking lot landscaping elevates the look and feel of the entire property. When well-appointed, a building’s parking lot conveys a powerful first impression for employees, clients, tenants, etc.

The team from Scan Design used 19 of PureModern’s medium and extra-large fiberglass planters to create interest for their corporate building.

Using Outdoor Planters for Restaurant Patios

In the eyes of many restaurant guests, outdoor dining options are almost as important as the menu itself. Whether guests are gathering for weekend brunch, a casual business lunch, or evening cocktails, planters help create a gorgeous and welcoming space.

Using Outdoor Planters for Large Trees

Whether on a rooftop or along sidewalks, large outdoor planters enable designers to incorporate greenery and vertical elements in the most efficient way.

How Drainage Works for Outdoor Planters

When water doesn’t drain properly, the plant’s roots can’t access enough oxygen and the plant can essentially drown.

We recommend erring on the side of caution and always ensuring your plants — whether in pots, gardens, or raised beds — have proper drainage.

Use planters with drainage holes or self-watering planters. And the following solutions will enable excess water to drain away:

A detachable saucer
Double potting
A bottom layer of gravel or rocks

How to Pick the Best Material for Your Outdoor Planters

The planter material you choose will impact lead time, cost, and customization options for your project. When choosing the best planter material for your landscape design, we recommend considering factors such as:

Durability
Weather resistance
Maintenance requirements

Below are the three most common outdoor planter materials.

Powder-Coated Aluminum Outdoor Planters

PureModern commercial-grade powder-coated aluminum planters are perfect for a project that requires low-maintenance and lightweight metal planters that can withstand extreme weather conditions as well as high-traffic areas.

Marine-grade aluminum does not rust and is powder-coated for durability. Powder-coating the planter ensures it will withstand UV rays, temperature changes, and other severe weather.

In addition to their durability, aluminum planters can be modified to add elements such as castors, lights, speakers, or even toe kicks. These modifications can create the illusion that the planter is floating.

Aluminum is easily customizable and can take the form of most geometric shapes.

Fiberglass Outdoor Planters

Fiberglass is a good solution if you need a planter that is lightweight, low-maintenance, and budget-friendly. Fiberglass planters can be painted in almost any color.

While lightweight, fiberglass is still long-lasting and difficult to break, and highly resistant to cracking or warping. Fiberglass resists mold, frost, and color fading from UV rays and helps plants retain moisture.

COR-TEN Steel Outdoor Planters

COR-TEN is the trademark name for weathering steel. COR-TEN is a group of steel alloys. The name COR-TEN comes from a combination of two essential properties: corrosion resistance (COR) and tensile strength (TEN).

One important characteristic of COR-TEN steel planters is the beautiful patina that develops after exposure to the climate. The patina protects the planter from further corrosion, which makes COR-TEN steel planters a long-lasting option.

How to Choose the Size for Your Outdoor Planters

As you consider the right size for your outdoor planters, think about ensuring optimal plant health and creating visual harmony within the overall space.

Consider the size of your plants at maturity and select a planter size that provides ample room for root growth and spreading foliage. Ideally, you’ll want two cubic feet of space in your planter for every square foot of canopy—the width of the plant’s branches at maturity.

For large and tall plants, opt for planters with a broad base and straight sides. For example:

Square planters
Rectangular planters
Reverse-tapered planters (wider at the base than the top)

For a larger tree, the planter should be large and heavy enough to act as a sturdy base to ensure the tree remains grounded as it grows. Larger trees will catch more wind, making them more prone to tipping if in a planter that’s too small or light.

Outdoor Planter Shapes

To select the right planter shape for your design plan, consider the planting plan, the type of foliage, and reasons for adding greenery to the space.

Below are a few examples:

Square containers make watering easy and provide more volume and surface area for a denser planting plan.
Rectangular planters can make a large space more intimate and help guide foot traffic.
To complement an entrance, consider square or round planters.
When adding trees primarily for the sake of heightening interest or creating a focal point, consider irregular-shaped planters.

Unique Outdoor Planter Shapes

When an outdoor planter with straight sides doesn’t seem to fit your design plan, you can still achieve your vision with uniquely-shaped planters.

Planters can be custom-made in options you never considered — even to fit perfectly around a post, a bench, or even another planter. Metal can be made into almost any origami shape. You’ll be amazed by what is possible.

Tapered Outdoor Planters

Tapered outdoor planters can create a stunning impact. The sleek and elegant silhouette of tapered planters creates a modern and contemporary aesthetic and complements a wide range of design styles.

Tower Outdoor Planters

Tower outdoor planters command a unique presence. These versatile pieces elevate the aesthetic of any design plan.

Key Consideration When Choosing Outdoor Planters

Outdoor planters offer endless creative options when designing an outdoor space.

One of the most critical considerations when choosing an outdoor planter is selecting the right vendor.

Each time you find a vendor that makes you feel comfortable and confident about a purchase, you save yourself time and frustration in the future.

To complete your project without a hitch, the planter vendor you choose should have the following characteristics:

Professional-level expertise, so you get the answers you need right away
High-quality products that are readily available and don’t crack after just one season
Wholesale options, so the more wholesale planters you buy, the larger the discount
Customized planter options that fit your project needs exactly
A no-fuss project process that eliminates wondering when you’ll get your quote or when your planters will ship
A guarantee plus a customer-centric attitude, so you don’t worry about encountering a problem, and you know the company will do right by you

Click here to view our planter collection and learn more about available options.