How to grow flowers in pots: choosing plants by season, soil and care

On 17 February 2026 the Bangladeshi news site Jagonews24 published, in its agriculture and nature section, a practical guide to planting flowers in pots. Its starting point was simple: flowers were in great demand all around, and many were needed for special days and festivals, so a building's roof, a yard, a balcony or even a stairwell could be used to grow flowering plants to suit the space available. The guide also gave a warning at the outset: not every flowering plant does well in a pot. It went on to list the flowers that suit pots in summer, in the monsoon, in winter and all through the year, named the plants that live for years, and explained how to choose a pot, prepare the soil, plant and care for the seedlings and feed them when buds appear.

This report retells that guide as it stood on the day, adds background from Banglapedia, the national encyclopaedia published by the Asiatic Society of Bangladesh, on the flowers and the seasons of Bangladesh, and sets the guide's steps beside the advice of university extension services that study container growing. The fertiliser amounts given in the original are not repeated here, because they could not be matched to a recommendation of an agricultural authority; readers who want a quantity for a particular plant should ask their upazila agriculture office.

Banglapedia's entry on floriculture, written by Mamun-ur Rashid and Abul Khair, defines it as the cultivation of flowers or flowering plants. The trade it describes covers mainly cut flowers, foliage plants and the propagating material of ornamental plants, as well as the inputs growers buy, such as chemicals, growing media and pots. The entry describes both amateur and commercial floriculture in Bangladesh as being at an early stage, with demand for foliage plants, cut flowers (mainly rose, tuberose, orchid and gladiolus) and the seeds of seasonal flowers rising slowly. A limited quantity of rose and tuberose, it says, was being exported to the Middle East and Europe, and private nurseries were coming up to meet home demand and possible future exports.

The same entry traces the cut-flower business to stalls at holy shrines, where flowers were sold to visiting devotees. Cut flowers became popular with the general public after the independence of Bangladesh, first through locally collected flowers and imported cultivated ones, and farmers then began growing flowers commercially to supply the capital and other towns. Among locally produced cut flowers traded regularly, Banglapedia lists rose, gladiolus, marigold in yellow, red and orange, chrysanthemum and tuberose in 'single' and 'double' forms, with lotus recently added; karabi, jasmine, kamini, water lily, dolonchapa, golden champa, dahlia and zinnia are available now and then. It notes that the Bangladesh Agricultural Research Institute (BARI) had opened a floriculture research centre to promote commercial flower growing.

Home gardens have a longer history. Banglapedia's entry on garden flowers, by Dwijen Sarma, says the meeting of Himalayan, Burma-Malayan and East Indian flora gave the land a rich vegetation, that the Mughals built organised, well-designed gardens and introduced a good number of new flowers such as the rose and lilies, and that many of the garden plants of present-day Bangladesh are of foreign origin, brought by traders, travellers, kings and later colonial rulers from China, Japan, Africa and tropical America as well as from India and Burma. The entry sorts garden plants into trees, shrubs, climbers, bulbous or rhizomatous plants and seasonal herbs, and that sorting helps explain the guide's lists: some of the plants it names are short-lived seasonal flowers, others are shrubs and climbers that can stay in a pot for years.

The guide's first rule was that different flowers grow in different seasons, so the plant must be chosen to match the season. Banglapedia explains the calendar behind that rule. The Bangla year is traditionally divided into six seasons of two months each: grisma (summer), barsa (the rains), sarat (autumn), hemanta (late autumn), shit (winter) and basanta (spring). In practice, the encyclopaedia says, Bangladesh has three distinct seasons: a pre-monsoon hot season from March to May, a rainy monsoon season from June to October, and a cool, dry winter from November to February.

Each of these shapes what a pot can hold. April is usually the hottest month, with mean temperatures from about 27 degrees Celsius in the east and south to 31 degrees in the west-central part of the country, and the pre-monsoon season brings 10 to 25 percent of the year's rain, mostly in thunderstorms. The monsoon brings 70 to 85 percent of the annual rainfall, often in long spells without a break. Winter is very dry, with less than 4 percent of the year's rain; Banglapedia gives average January temperatures from about 11 degrees Celsius in the north-west and north-east to 20 to 21 degrees on the coast. A pot on a roof feels all of this more sharply than a bed in the ground, drying out fast in the heat and staying wet in long rains.

The guide appeared in mid-February, at the end of the cool dry season in Banglapedia's description, when many winter flowers are still in bloom and the hot season is a few weeks away. Banglapedia also links flowers to the traditional seasons: roses, bakul, beli, tagar and jaba blossom in summer; keya, kadam, kamini, jui and gandharaj are the fragrant flowers of the rains; and shiuli, roses, bakul, mallika, kamini and madhabi flower in autumn.

For summer, the guide named gandharaj, tuberose, sunflower, zinnia, petunia, cockscomb, balsam, monikuntala and bichitra. For the rains it suggested hydrangea, beli, jui, champa, patralekha, tusharmoti, balsam, zinnia, small sunflowers, sthalpadma and malatilata.

Banglapedia's garden-flower entry gives the botanical identity of most of these. Gandharaj is Gardenia jasminoides, the cape jasmine, an evergreen garden shrub. Tuberose, rajanigandha, is Polianthes tuberosa, which the entry places among the bulbous plants, those that die back and reappear from an underground bulb. Sunflower is Helianthus annuus, zinnia is Zinnia elegans, petunia is Petunia hybrida, cockscomb is Celosia argentea and balsam, known in Bangla as dopati, is Impatiens balsamina; all five are in the encyclopaedia's list of seasonal flowers. Beli is the Arabian jasmine, Jasminum sambac, and sthalpadma, the changeable rose, is Hibiscus mutabilis; both are listed among the common flowering shrubs. Jui, Jasminum auriculatum, and malatilata, Aganosma dichotoma, are climbers.

The difference matters in a pot. The seasonal flowers in these lists are grown for one season and then replaced, so they need a pot only large enough for a few months of growth. The shrubs and climbers keep growing from year to year, and a climber such as jui or malatilata needs a support to climb on from the start. Banglapedia points out that climbers occupy little space on the ground and can therefore be fitted into a small area, which is one reason they suit a balcony or the edge of a roof.

For winter, the guide named marigold, rose, nasturtium, pansy, petunia, verbena, camellia, dahlia, chrysanthemum, carnation, salvia, gerbera and azalea. This is the season when potted flowers are most visible in Bangladesh, and Banglapedia explains why. Its entry on garden flowers describes seasonal flowers as mostly exotic plants that are commonly cultivated in winter, with only a few growing in all seasons including summer, and says they are loved for their bright blossoms in the dull winter landscape.

The encyclopaedia's list of seasonal flowers includes several of the guide's winter choices by their botanical names: African marigold, Tagetes erecta, and French marigold, Tagetes patula; nasturtium, Tropaeolum majus; pansy, Viola tricolor hortensis; verbena, Verbena hybrida; dahlia, Dahlia variabilis; chrysanthemum, called chandramallika; carnation, Dianthus caryophyllus; and salvia, Salvia coccinea. Marigold and chrysanthemum are also among the cut flowers that Banglapedia's floriculture entry says are grown commercially in Bangladesh, and the rose leads that list.

Because the guide was published in February, its winter list was a list for the season then ending. Most winter seasonal flowers are raised from seedlings in the cool months, so a gardener reading the guide in February would be planning the next winter's pots, or choosing summer flowers for the months ahead.

Besides the seasonal lists, the guide named plants that flower through the year: white kanchan, jaba, kamini, karabi, alokananda (allamanda), jayanti, hajarputia, nayantara and sandhyamalati, also called sandhyamoni. It also listed plants that can be grown in pots as long-lived plants: beli, jui, bougainvillea, rose, jaba, karabi, gandharaj, kanchan, kunda, champa, mussaenda, kamini, allamanda, sthalpadma, portlandia, brunfelsia, camellia, tagar, shiuli and poinsettia.

Banglapedia identifies most of these. Kanchan is Bauhinia acuminata, the orchid tree; jaba is Hibiscus rosa-sinensis, the China rose; kamini is Murraya exotica; karabi, or raktakarabi, is Nerium oleander; tagar is Tabernaemontana coronaria; nayantara is the periwinkle, Vinca rosea; sandhyamalati is Mirabilis jalapa, the marvel of Peru; kunda is Jasminum pubescens; mussaenda is grown in several species; and poinsettia, called lalpata, is Euphorbia pulcherrima. All of these are on the encyclopaedia's list of common flowering garden shrubs. Bougainvillea, baganbilas, is a climber, and Banglapedia lists Brunfelsia calycina, yesterday-today-tomorrow, among the uncommon shrubs that are rather rare in Bangladesh gardens.

Two plants in the long-lived list grow as trees in the open ground: Banglapedia lists shephali or shiuli, Nyctanthes arbor-tristis, the coral jasmine, among flowering trees, and golden champa, Michelia champaca, among them as well. Allamanda appears both as a shrub, Allamanda nerifolia, and as a climber, Allamanda cathartica. A gardener choosing a long-lived plant for a pot is therefore choosing a plant that will keep growing, which is why the guide's next advice was about pot size.

The guide's first planting step was to collect a pot of a size that suits the plant. A large pot for a small plant does no harm, it said, but a small pot is not suitable for a large plant.

University extension advice agrees and adds a reason. The University of Georgia Cooperative Extension's circular on gardening in containers (Circular 787, reviewed in July 2022) says that small pots restrict root growth, which limits top growth, and the end result is fewer flowers. Rather than small six-inch pots, it advises gardeners to think in terms of containers holding several gallons of potting mixture, which produce the most attractive plants and the most flowers and need watering less often. The same circular says the most important thing to check when choosing a container is whether it has adequate drainage holes. If a gardener wants to use an attractive pot with no hole, it suggests 'double potting': planting in a pot that has drainage holes and setting that pot on gravel inside the decorative one.

The material of the pot matters too. A fact sheet from the Oregon State University Extension Service's master gardener programme on hanging baskets notes that wood, sphagnum moss and unglazed clay or terracotta containers can dry out quickly, and that clay and terracotta pots become very heavy once planted and watered, a point worth remembering on a roof or a balcony.

For each pot, the guide said, the soil should be made by mixing loam with one third of its volume of organic fertiliser or rotted cow dung. It added that a handful of bone meal, two teaspoons of lime and two handfuls of ash mixed in would help, and that this keeps the soil in the pot fertile for a long time.

The reason for the organic matter lies in how water moves in a pot. The University of Georgia circular explains that field soil drains by capillary action, which pulls excess water downward, but soil in a container drains poorly because of its shallow depth and weaker capillary pull. This is made up for by a more porous mixture. Poorly drained soil leaves roots short of air; under those conditions roots become stressed, root-rotting fungi invade easily, and plants fail to grow properly or even die. For gardeners mixing their own soil, the circular says good field soils, sandy or clay loams, can be used if blended with organic matter, and that a mix of 50 percent soil and 50 percent organic matter works well. The Oregon State fact sheet warns that garden soil on its own is too fine-textured for containers and severely limits drainage, and that the often-repeated advice to put coarse material at the bottom of a pot for drainage is wrong, because that layer actually hinders drainage.

The circular also explains the role of lime in a potting mixture: it supplies calcium and magnesium, both essential elements, and adjusts the mixture to a pH range suitable for plant growth. It stresses mixing every ingredient evenly, since layers of different materials in a pot interfere with root growth, and warns against over-fertilising, which can damage roots.

For seasonal flowers, the guide advised planting seedlings about a month old. For other plants it recommended young, healthy, fresh and sturdy seedlings or cuttings. After planting, the soil at the base should be pressed gently to firm it, and the plant watered at the base. The plant needs a support to keep it upright, arranged from the seedling stage, and a split bamboo stick can be used for this.

The University of Georgia circular describes the same steps in more detail. It advises against packing the soil when filling a container: the pot should be bumped lightly on the ground to settle the mix, and filled to within about two inches of the rim so that there is room for water to soak the soil. The plant's root mass should be wetted thoroughly before planting, the roots set shallow rather than deep, the soil gently firmed around them, and the plant watered in well, which may take a couple of waterings in succession to wet the whole mixture.

The guide then advised keeping newly planted seedlings in the shade for a few days to let them adjust, while giving them morning and afternoon sun. This is what gardeners call hardening off. Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County explains that young plants raised in sheltered conditions are easily damaged by strong sunlight, wind and faster water loss, and that hardening off makes their tissues firmer, thickens the natural wax on the leaves and reduces the rate of water loss. It recommends doing it gradually over seven to ten days, starting with two to three hours in a shaded, sheltered spot and adding a little more time and sun each day, keeping the plants from wilting, and not fertilising during the process.

The guide recommended loosening the soil at the base of a potted plant in small clods rather than crumbling it to a fine powder, to a depth of 3 to 10 centimetres, or 1 to 4 inches, once every 10 days.

Pots also need closer watching for water than beds do. The Oregon State fact sheet says a 10-inch container may need watering every one or two days, smaller ones more often, and that in hot weather a container may need water once or twice a day, depending on its size and the plants in it. Its simple test is to feel the surface of the potting mix: water if it is dry, do not if it is moist. It also advises removing faded flowers at least once a week to keep plants tidy.

On feeding, the guide said that once the plants show signs of budding, a mixture of the three common chemical fertilisers, TSP (which it called the black fertiliser), urea (the white fertiliser) and MoP (the red fertiliser), should be given to each plant in a small measured amount every 10 days, but no more than three times in a season. Care must be taken, it said, that the fertiliser never falls on the roots. If tablet fertiliser is used, it added, these fertilisers are not needed. The original gave amounts in grams and spoonfuls; because those amounts could not be confirmed against a recommendation from the Department of Agricultural Extension, BARI or another authority, they are not repeated here, and gardeners should ask their upazila agriculture office for the right quantity for their plants and pot size.

The University of Georgia circular supports the cautions in the guide. It says plants in a mix already enriched with fertiliser need no feeding for the first two to three weeks, after which nutrient levels drop because plants use them and frequent watering washes them out. It advises watering after a dry fertiliser is applied, to dissolve it and carry it to the roots and reduce the risk of damage to stems and roots, and it describes slow-release fertilisers sold as small round pellets that release nutrients gradually when wet, adding that the label should be checked because products and rates differ.

Photo: ClickwithEyes / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0)

Sources: Jagonews24 (17 February 2026), Banglapedia (Asiatic Society of Bangladesh: Floriculture, Garden Flowers, Season), University of Georgia Cooperative Extension (Circular 787, Gardening in Containers, reviewed July 2022), Oregon State University Extension Service master gardener fact sheet (Hanging Baskets), Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County (Hardening Off Transplants)