The Best Trailing Plants for Containers, Hanging Baskets, and More

The best trailing plants can transform your space from flat and static to flowing with vertical interest. These beauties fall, drape, and cascade over garden edges, and even make wonderful groundcovers. Whether you’ve got a shady grove or a sun-drenched patio, there’s a trailing plant waiting to become your new garden friend.

 

What Are Trailing Plants, Exactly?

Trailing plants are like the flowing hair of a garden. They grow with long, flexible stems like vines. However, instead of growing upright, they cascade over the sides of pots, window boxes, hanging baskets, and walls. Some hug the ground as groundcovers, while others hang like floral curtains or a waterfall of leaves. 

 

Why Use Trailing Plants in Your Garden?

Trailing plants are most often used in container gardens. They hide the edges of a planter and spill over the side, giving a feeling of natural abundance and overflow. On top of any ledge, they turn a plain wall into a living piece of art. In tight, urban spaces, they use vertical dimension when you’re low on ground space. These plants do very well spilling over retaining walls, creeping through a rock garden, hanging in a basket, or trailing from raised beds.  

 

The Best Trailing Plants for Your Pennsylvania Garden 

Without further ado, let’s take a look at the most common and well-loved trailing plants for home gardens:

 

1. Sweet Potato Vine (Ipomoea batatas)

This trailing superstar is all about bold foliage. You’ll find varieties in deep purple, lime green, and even variegated mixes that make container combos pop! It loves the sun, spreads quickly, and is perfect for creating drama in hanging baskets or patio pots. Just don’t overwater—sweet potato vines like it on the drier side once established.

 

2. Trailing Petunias (Petunia spp.)

With their abundant blooms and lovely draping habit, petunias are a staple in summer displays! They thrive in full sun and bloom all season long if you keep up with feeding and deadheading. Their color range is nearly endless—go bold with magenta, soft with pale pink, or mysterious with deep purple. They’re ideal for baskets, window boxes, and bright borders.

 

3. Creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia)

This ground-hugging plant boasts bright chartreuse foliage that lights up shady corners. It’s super versatile—use it in beds, over walls, or tumbling from containers. Creeping Jenny handles partial shade like a champ and adds a great textural contrast to other plants. Just keep an eye on it—it can get a little too enthusiastic if left unchecked!

 

4. Vinca (Vinca minor)

Also called periwinkle, this old world groundcover has a timeless charm. Vinca minor is a hardy perennial with glossy leaves and delicate purple-blue blooms. It’s great for shady spots, making it one of the go-to trailing plants for shade and sun alike. This is a top pick for low-maintenance gardeners looking for an evergreen touch in those difficult growing spots.

 

5. Sedum (Sedum spp.)

Sedums are unique succulents most often found in sunny, dry areas. These low-maintenance plants come in a variety of colors and shapes, and some are trailing, like Burro’s Tail or Sedum mexicanum. Sedums need minimal watering, minimal maintenance, and lots of sun. They’re also bee-friendly, producing lots of small blossoms and flowering in mid-to-late summer when pollinators are in need of food.

 

6. Ice Plant (Delosperma cooperi)

This drought-tolerant succulent brings an unexpected burst of bright, daisy-like flowers. Its fleshy leaves and vibrant blooms love sun and poor soil, making it ideal for rocky spots or dry slopes. Ice plant trails beautifully and brings great texture to containers and borders. Think of it as tough beauty in floral form.

 

7. Bacopa (Sutera cordata)

Bacopa is a soft-spoken gem with delicate white, lavender, or pink flowers that bloom like crazy. It does best with regular watering and part to full sun, thriving in hanging baskets and mixed planters. Pair it with showier plants for a soft, cascading effect that doesn’t compete. It’s a sweet complement to bolder bloomers.

 

8. Lobelia (Lobelia erinus)

Lobelia brings vivid color—especially electric blue—that’s hard to find in other trailing plants. It’s a cool-season lover, doing best in spring and early summer, or in shady summer spots. While it prefers consistent moisture, it rewards you with stunning trails of color. Great for window boxes and front porch baskets!

 

9. Dichondra ‘Silver Falls’

With its metallic, shimmering foliage, ‘Silver Falls’ adds elegance to any combo. It’s heat-and drought-tolerant, thriving in full sun and drier soil. Its long, silvery tendrils look especially gorgeous spilling from tall pots or elevated baskets. Pair it with purples or reds for an exciting color combination.

 

10. Nasturtium (Tropaeolum majus)

Nasturtiums are the edible stars of the trailing world. Their bright orange, yellow, or red flowers and round leaves trail beautifully from containers and raised beds. They like sun, enjoy most soils, and are completely edible—with a distinct, peppery flavor. Thriving in edible or non-edible arrangements, they are a playful and practical choice for veggie and ornamental gardens alike. They are also adept climbers, allowing them to grow upwards on trellises and lattices. 

 

Tips for Using Trailing Plants Like a Garden Designer

Want a magazine-worthy, lush look? Start by mixing trailing plants in container arrangements with upright and mounding partners for a balanced “thriller, filler, spiller” effect. Try pairing contrasting textures and colors for a layered effect—think fuzzy, silver leaves spilling under bold, purple blooms. They’re great at filling gaps and adding continuity between garden elements.

 

Maintenance Tips for Trailing Plants

While trailing plants aren’t divas, a little care goes a long way. Keep your soil well-draining, especially in containers—no one likes soggy roots! Most trailers appreciate a regular feeding, especially the flowering types. Don’t be afraid to give them a haircut mid-season to encourage new growth and better shape.

 

Trailing Plants in Pennsylvania: Why They Work

Pennsylvania’s mix of sunny summers and varied shade zones makes it a perfect playground for trailing plants. From hot, dry decks to cool, wooded gardens, there’s a trailing variety that fits the bill. Many of the plants listed here thrive in containers, which is ideal for making seasonal arrangements. 

 

‘Trailing Plants’ vs ‘Climbing Plants’ — What’s the Difference?  

Both trailing plants and climbing plants have long,  flexible stems that unfurl outwards as they grow, like fingers reaching for more space. The difference is that climbing plants can attach themselves to surfaces, like a trellis or fence, allowing them to climb upwards. In contrast, trailing plants usually cannot grasp or climb. However, some climbing plants, like nasturtiums, can also be left to grow downward, making them a good trailing plant for hanging baskets, container gardens, or groundcover.     

 

On the Trail of Trailing Plants 

Whether you’re working with a small patio or a sprawling yard, the best trailing plants can transform your garden from basic to mysteriously beautiful. They bring graceful movement, fill empty spaces, and turn gardens into a lush, cascading display of beauty. Discover everything from groundcovers to dramatic spillers, plus all the trailing plant varieties in Glenside, PA—visit the team at Primex Garden Center!