Small Doorstep Plants for Your Southern California Porch, Patio, and Small Balcony

Written by Kelsey W.

The door to your home is a place to welcome visitors to your house, as well as the first thing you see when you get back from work or errands. Making your front door or porch a beautiful place to be with plants is fun, especially in Southern California with all the wonderful sunny weather we have each year.

However, things can get a little hairy when you’re dealing with a small space or just a few feet around your doorstep. Maybe you live in a condo where the front door is in a small hallway or perhaps the entrance to your apartment is on the same stoop as your neighbor.

Are there plants that you can bring home that will fit in a small space yet still provide that comfortable sense of respite when you return home each night?

As you might have already guessed, SoCal is certainly home to some excellent options for your porch plant paradise. Plus, many of these plants are self-sufficient, so they’re an easy addition to your home. Let’s take a look at some fun little plants for your doorstep, porch, or small balcony.

Small Plants That Love Outdoors and Offer Bright Color

One of the best plants to beautify your porch is the marigold, which isn’t always in season but is the perfect little flower for a nice presentation in a decorative pot. When you feed and water your marigolds regularly in the summer, they reward you with amazingly happy, puffy blooms that never get too tall or overwhelming for a little porch or stoop.

Another seasonal plant to beautify your space is called Calibrachoa, which is sometimes referred to as the million bells plant. The flowers are generally around for just one season, so they’re a great choice when you want to regularly switch out the flowers you display on your porch. If you like seasonal updates, putting an annual (or short-lived perennial) like Calibrachoa is ideal.

If your small space never gets any sun – maybe you have a covered porch or a north-facing front door – you might try planting a pot of impatiens. These are shade-loving flowers that are super easy to grow. You can fertilize them if you want, but truthfully, just giving them an occasional drink is often enough to keep them blooming throughout much of the year.

Keep Plants Small by Using Pots and Containers

You may want to investigate slow-growing plants that you can forcibly keep small by putting them in pots to restrict their growth. Have you ever moved a plant from a pot to the ground and seen it become quite large very fast?

All many plants need to grow large is the space of a large plot of dirt, but the opposite is true, too. You can keep many plants quite petite for years longer than they would otherwise stay small simply by putting them in a small container.

For example, the ubiquitous jade plant, which is grown all over Southern California on purpose in gardens and by accident in random fields, grows into a large healthy bush when given the chance. However, putting a jade plant, or any of its similar cousins, into a small pot will keep it tidy for a long time.

Another excellent way to make your small porch green with a plant that won’t outgrow your space is to plant something that would otherwise grow into a large hedge if not for the small container you use for it. A good option is the dwarf boxwood, which you can cut into pleasing shapes while keeping it small in a pot.

Other plants that do well in containers and stay small without requiring a larger pot include any type of miniature roses, as well as virtually any sort of herb/ You could make an herb garden out of your balcony with a few small pots of lavender, thyme, mint, or any other herb meant for use in the kitchen. Not only are those herbs useful, but they’re great for beautifying your little porch, too.

It’s helpful to keep an eye on your herbs since they can get a little unwieldy in appearance. Make sure to prune them on the regular and remember that you can use them in your kitchen, so you don’t need to waste the clippings when you’re pruning the herbs.

Choose These Drought-Resistant Plants for a Worry-Free Porch

Covering your porch with plants often means putting another “to do” on your daily list, and you might worry about forgetting to water your plants, especially if you don’t have any other plants in your home or you’re bringing home some new green friends for the first time.

One of the ways you can bring plants home without also introducing a lot of work to your daily routine is choosing plants with a high tolerance for drought. Many Southern California native plants don’t actually need additional water and thrive in the ground from the rain and moisture that occur naturally throughout the region.

The one caveat here is that most of your small porch plants will be in containers, and containers tend to need a little more water than usual. Therefore, even though you might choose some drought-resistant plants, you may need to increase the watering schedule ever so slightly to account for the fact that the plant won’t be getting any water from the ground.

One of the best options for drought-resistant plants for your patio is the Echeveria, which is one of the prettiest succulents on the plant and just happens to adore the hot Southern California weather. This succulent has leaves that look like flowers, so it basically always looks like it’s blooming. There are all sorts of leaf shapes and colors of Echeveria, so you can create quite a colorful and dynamic little display out of them.

Another drought-resistant beauty that will love sitting on your balcony is the lantana plant, which is also a very colorful option for your space. Lantana is a member of the verbena family of plants and is a very tough plant, thriving in conditions that would pummel other less hardy plants. Lantana is a great choice for your patio because it grows exceptionally well in pots.

Tips for Keeping Potted Plants Happy and Thriving

Growing plants successfully in pots does require a little more attention than simply putting them in a pot, covering the roots with dirt, and tossing some water at the plant every so often. You may find that you need to trim your potted plants a little more often than if they were in the ground, especially if you’re trying to keep them at a pygmy size.

Here are some things to remember when caring for your small potted plants.

1. Check moisture regularly – check the soil regularly for the correct moisture level until you can create a confident watering schedule.
2. Use quality soil – use a high-quality potting mix meant specifically for your type of plant and for potted plants, so your new plant friend gets its best start at your home.
3. Make sure the pot has drainage – some decorative pots don’t actually have drainage holes. Make sure your pot has drainage holes or that you add them before you put your plant into the soil.
4. Choose the right plants for the light – if you have a shady porch, make sure you choose plants that love the shade. Conversely, if you have sun all day at your front door, make sure your plants love the sun.

Once you have all the basics chosen – the pots, the soil, and the plants – it’s just a matter of making sure that you water, feed, and prune the little plants correctly. Don’t worry if it takes a little time to get everything right and happy. The process of creating a happy plant for your front porch should be one to enjoy and take your time with.

Get to Growing with a Visit to Green Thumb Nursery

Are you looking for some new plants to add to your collection? Is it time to decorate your front porch with something green and vibrant? Do you want to surround your small space with lively flora and fauna? Then you should add a visit to Green Thumb Nursery to your calendar. Find the perfect plants for your home at any SoCal location.

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