Level up your patio or porch this fall with bright blooms and exquisite evening scent – here's how to grow four o'clocks in containers

Four o'clocks (Mirabilis jalapa) are bright, fragrant, attractive to pollinators, and you can grow them in containers. If you garden in a smaller space and want to enjoy these stunning plants, here is all you need to know for growing four o'clocks in containers successfully.

Growing four o'clocks in containers offers something different to the annual bedding plants typically found occupying pots and planters in summer. Juliet Howe, award-winning horticulturist and founder of Twigs Design, is one of many who adore four o'clocks in pots, as she says: 'They can be placed on patios or entrance ways where their evening scent and vibrant color can be best enjoyed.'

If you want to grow four o'clock plants to add vibrancy and fragrance to your yard, there are a few key areas to get right so the plants thrive in a container. We reveal how to select the right pot and spot in your yard for four o'clocks in containers, along with some expert tips for maintaining plants so they thrive and give you the best display.

Can you plant four o'clocks in containers?

You can grow four o'clocks in container gardens for a spectacular flowering display to attract hummingbirds, butterflies, bees and nocturnal pollinators. The fragrant flowers open late in the afternoon and often stay open all night, making them fantastic flowers for enjoying in the evening with a drink.

Most gardeners will grow four o'clocks in containers as annual plants. But you may even be able to enjoy your displays for longer.

You can overwinter the plants indoors, or as Edwin Dysinger from Seedtime explains: 'Four o'clocks are warm-weather flowering plants that originated in the regions between Mexico and Nicaragua, although some sources say they originated in Peru. In warm climates (zone 9 and warmer), it is a perennial, while in colder climates it is an annual.'

Expert tips for success with four o'clocks in containers – 5 crucial steps

When you grow four o'clocks as container plants for pollinators, some aspects can make a difference between a glorious display and a disappointing one. They are not necessarily low-maintenance plants for pots, but you can make life easier for yourself by getting the following aspects right:

1. Pot size

Four o'clocks can grow to 2-3 feet tall and 1-2 feet wide, and, when grown as perennial plants, develop large tubers. It means they need a large container to have the space to grow into.

You can grow four o'clocks in pots, planters, troughs, raised beds, or even self-watering planters if you want to make maintenance a little bit easier. Any container should be at least 20 inches in diameter and large enough to hold five gallons of soil. The container can be of any material, but must have holes in the bottom for drainage to prevent the plant from suffering from root rot.

Fill your container with a fertile, well-draining potting mix, which is always the best soil for container gardening. Such as this premium organic potting mix from Burpee, which feeds plants for up to three months and contains coconut coir to maintain moisture.

2. Location

Four o'clocks do best in full sun. Find a spot in your yard where they can get six hours of sun each day, and they will flower well, even in pots.

Juliet Howe describes them as a 'sun-loving flower' but adds one caveat to keeping them happy. 'In particularly hot climates, the harsh afternoon sun may be too much, so some late-day shade is preferable,' she advises.

You can grow four o'clocks in containers on a porch, deck, patio, or balcony. Juliet has one other key piece of advice for picking the best spot for your pots.

'Perhaps most importantly, four o'clocks have this name because of the joy they bring when they open in the late afternoon, releasing their delicious, intoxicating scent,' says the expert.

'Be sure you plant these where you will most enjoy them.'

Juliet Howe

Juliet Howe is an award-winning horticulturist and the founder of Twigs Design. For more than two decades she has helped beautify the homes, gardens, and communities of Fairfield County, CT.

3. Watering

Juliet Howe warns gardeners growing four o'clocks in containers that 'pots will dry out much more quickly than a garden bed'. Therefore, she recommends: 'In the summer heat, one will most likely need to water deeply and daily.'

Four o'clocks in containers will perform their best in moist soil. Keep a close eye on the pot and avoid the top two inches of soil drying out. And when watering plants in containers, water deeply until it starts to run out of the drainage holes.

4. Feeding

Just as more watering is required with pots, you also need to fertilize container plants more regularly than plants outdoors in a flower bed.

Juliet advises adding a bloom booster fertilizer weekly to the container to replenish the soil and get more flowers. A liquid bloom booster is a great fertilizer for flowers in pots. Such products contain higher levels of phosphorus and potassium to promote the production of lots of flowers.

5. Pruning

Four o'clocks in containers will benefit from some light pruning throughout the growing season. Giving them some TLC with clean and sharp pruning shears or garden snips will reward you with bushier plants and more blooms.

'When your young plant is about a foot tall, clip the top few inches of the main stem, just above a set of leaves,' advises Juliet.

'And don’t forget to deadhead,' she adds. 'Throughout the flowering season, deadhead the spent flowers to encourage not only more flowers, but also a longer blooming season.'

If you want a lovely-smelling patio, growing a range of fragrant flowers and herbs in pots will bring a gorgeous scent to outdoor spaces of any size. The likes of rosemary, lavender, sweet peas, and nicotiana are all plants that will make a patio smell nice, and all of which are perfectly suitable for growing in containers.