Yes, you can grow full sun annuals containers with great success if you give them extra care. Many sun-loving flowers do well in pots on your deck or patio. You just need to water and feed them more often than plants in the ground.
I grow lantana, vinca, and petunias in large pots on my south-facing patio every summer. The concrete around them reflects extra heat and light onto the plants all day long. My container annual flowers get baked from above and below during July heat. The plants that can handle these tough conditions give me color all season.
Container plants need more water because their roots can't spread out to find moisture like they would in your garden beds. The small soil volume dries out fast in summer heat. I water my pots every morning without fail during hot spells. Some days I check again in the afternoon and water a second time.
Your potted sun loving plants also need more food than flowers in the ground. Every time you water, nutrients wash out through the drainage holes. Feed your potted annuals with liquid fertilizer every 1-2 weeks in summer. This keeps them blooming strong all season long.
The pot you choose matters more than you might think for your flowers. Dark colored containers absorb heat and cook roots on hot days. Light colored or glazed pots stay cooler and protect your plants better. Pick pots that are at least 12 inches wide so roots have room to grow.
Drainage holes are a must for any container you use for annuals. Standing water kills roots faster than drought in most cases. I drill extra holes in any pot that doesn't drain well on its own. Use potting mix made for containers instead of garden soil which packs down too tight.
Some annuals handle container life better than others in full sun spots. Vinca, lantana, and portulaca can take heat and some drought between waterings. Petunias work well if you keep up with water and deadheading through summer. Zinnias and marigolds do fine in large pots with steady care from you.
Group your pots together to create shade at soil level and help them stay cooler. A single pot baking alone on concrete gets much hotter than a cluster of them together. I arrange my containers in groups of three or four on my patio. The plants shade each other's pots and I don't lose as many to heat stress.
Read the full article: Full Sun Annuals That Thrive in Sunshine
