Normally I put red geraniums, white Dreams petunias, sky blue pansies and a piece of whatever trailing vine I have on hand in large clay pots on the portico. This year, I impulse bought something different - Gerbera daisies, coleus, and the purple sweet potato vine. Some of the folks over on the Container Gardening forum put together some really stunning combinations which is where I got the idea for the sweet potato vine - that also comes in an interesting chartreuse color.

If your front steps are sunny, you have no end of choices for annuals. I really don't think geraniums can be beat and they pair up with lots of different plants.

This year I planted a container with dusty miller, purple petunia, and a coleus that has purple leaves. The purple on the coleus and petunia really looks great with the silvery leaves of dusty miller.

Geez, I didn't realize there was a Container Gardening forum. Better get over there. But my question about Chicago-area containers still holds! I'm not a big fan of geraniums for some reason but I sure love those hot pink ones.

I'm thinking the annuals selection at your local garden centers or big box stores (our Wal-mart had some good looking things for at least half the price of the garden centers) would be pretty much the same for those of us in Indiana, Minnesota and Illinois since we're not too far away in the hardiness zones.

If you're fond of daisy-like flowers, Osteospermum or Cape Daisey comes in more pastel shades of purple, pink, white, yellow. The Gerbera Daisies are bigger and bolder colored. Calibrachoa is a nice trailing plant, like a tiny petunia, and if you pinch it back a little it'll stay fuller. Petunias come in a good range of colors and would be a good container choice, and pinks (dianthus) come in shades of red, red fringed in white, white fringed in red, salmon.

For foliage - as noted above, dusty miller is a real good choice since it's a silvery gray color it just goes with everything. Ivies, sweet potato vine, coleus, there's just so much variety to choose from. And if you need a tall accent, there's a plant we always just called "spike".

Have fun - if you see color combinations you like, go with it. Pretty hard to go wrong.

My favorites are a Spike in center..they now sell a purple colored spike which is gorgous. I place Petunia, then either Swedish Ivy or Sweet Potato, then back to Petunia, condinuting. The scent of Petunia and Swedish Ivy can't be beat..
In another 'plastic' pot I add one gold Sweet Potato, one purple/black, one variegated, and again go around. You can also add Celosia or Sylvia in center..Or dwarf Nicotianas..there's so many varietes to choose from.
Coleus are nice, but we have to be careful since direct sun wilts them..Toni

You have received some great suggestions. Another favorite of mine are ivy geraniums, they cascade. I'm in Florida now but lived in a NW suburb until recently.

I've got a favorite container this year, small zebrina (red spotted leaf)banana in the center with yellow alternanthera, and red dragonwing begonia.
Does really well in the sun.

One of my favorite plants for pots is Scaevola aemula (Fan Flower)...most common is purple, but there is a white variety, too...mixed with a nice Sweet Potato vine and possibly some ornamental grass (such as Juncus or Carex) that you can plant out in the fall. Also, Dichondra 'Silver Falls' is wonderful as an accent and can be brought in for a houseplant.

I have several favorites

for a sun container I combined yellow and puple callibrachoa - also called million bells, Euphorbia - Diamond frost, and 2 types of full sun coleus in purple, and a variegated red-purple and yellow-green. I also have one that has orange sedge, red-orange marigolds, and orange/terracotta callibrachoa.

for a part shade container I used spikes - dracenea (sp?), purple oxalis - shamrock, and chartruese sweet potato vine.

for full shade I have one with Plectranthus 'Mona Lavender', clown plant, dichondra - silver falls, and helichrysum - silver mist. I have another that has Creeping Jenny, and... well creeping jenny - I loved it so much I just planted it on its own and never got around to adding anything, it looks like a waterfall of leaves, it is great!

I hope I'm not too late - I've never been in this forum but thought I'd visit. I'm always in the Hosta forum. I just thought I'd post a pic of a planter idea that I think is gorgeous and there are NO flowers of any consequence. The peach is coleus.

Westy

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Wow, those planters are huge! I ended up with hot pink geraniums, Powis Castle artemisia & some Corsican violets that just don't stop blooming & like to hang over the edge. I mail ordered them since I was getting something else and planted them in two places in my yard too; hoping they'll come back. Funny how I keep trying to eradicate the creeping charlie with nice little purple flowers in spring and I go and plant others. But these play nicer.

Thanks for all the ideas--there's always next year.

I like putting some scented geraniums in my pots on the front stairs--these don't bloom, but come in a variety of scents that are heavenly--mint, chocolate, etc and are a great welcome home.