How to Choose Plants by Size and Height

When choosing your plants or bulbs, don't forget to consider the natural height of the flower once it is grown and think carefully about plant height selection. Just as with your colours, it is nice to mix in some perennials into your flower beds that will complement the bulbs you plant. A thoughtful plant height selection helps you decide which taller varieties belong in the back and which short plants for landscaping should be placed near the front or along pathways. In small spaces, the plant height selection also guides you toward compact plants for small gardens so every plant can be seen and enjoyed. Paying attention to plant height and flower height at the planning stage prevents taller stems from overshadowing delicate blooms and keeps the overall display in proportion.

Position Taller Plants at the Back

Taller growing plants and bulbs are best placed toward the back of garden borders. Consider using:

• Phlox
• Peonies
• Tall Daylilies
• Milkweed
• Lilies
• Taller Allium Varieties
• Gladiolus
• Dinnerplate Dahlias
• Cannas

Their height creates a natural backdrop, framing the planting area and drawing the eye upward as their blooms rise above shorter plants in front.

Use Shorter Plants to Define the Front

Shorter plants and bulbs belong toward the front of the border. They are ideal for edging beds, lining paths, and filling gaps between taller perennials, such as:

• Hostas
• Hardy Cyclamen
• Lily of the Valley
• Begonias
• Grape Hyacinths
• Crocus
• Snowdrops
• Columbines
• Grecian Windflowers

Create a Layered, Professional Look

Comparing the heights of these plants makes it easy to see how intentional height placement shapes a layered, professional-looking border. Using tall varieties as a backdrop and shorter ones at the front guides the viewer’s gaze through the planting, adding depth, structure, and visual harmony to the garden.

An exception to this rule would be where a shorter bulb emerges and blooms early before the plant located in front grows large enough to screen it. Once the bloom period is past, the larger front plant will screen the maturing foliage of the shorter plant. This type of layered plant height selection lets you enjoy colour in the same space at different times of the season without the garden ever looking empty. A tall lacy plant can be treated as a short plant since you'll be able to see other plants through its foliage, allowing you to mix tall and short plants for landscaping in the same visual plane. When you think about flower height over time, rather than at a single moment, plant height selection becomes a tool for extending seasonal interest and using plant height to create depth.

Tall growing tubers like tall dahlias should be used in the corner of the garden or yard where they are viewed from a distance. Their height and showy blooms make them excellent focal points, and their flower height helps draw the eye across the entire border. The dwarf types can be used as facer plants, especially when you need compact plants for small gardens that still offer strong colour and form. By alternating tall dahlias in the background and dwarf forms in the foreground, you can maintain a consistent theme while respecting careful plant height selection. This strategy also lets you repeat the same variety at different levels, reinforcing your design while still relying on short plants for landscaping near paths and seating areas, where lower plant height keeps sightlines open.

Remember that a tall, bushy plant may look short and spindly for the first year or two. Try planting a group of young plants and thinning them out as they mature, or fill in the empty spaces with annuals or some bulbs you lift in fall, like begonias, dahlias, gladiolus and cannas. This approach keeps beds from looking bare while your long-term plant height selection fills in and reaches its full size. During these early years, you can also rely on short plants for landscaping to fill the foreground and maintain interest close to paths and seating areas. As these compact plants for small gardens grow and mature, you can adjust your plant height selection by moving or dividing clumps to keep the balance of flower height just right and to maintain a pleasant progression of plant height from front to back.

To keep the garden interesting, try providing a variety of sizes all season long. Combine towering perennials and bulbs in the back, medium-height plants in the middle, and compact plants for small gardens in the front to create a smooth, tiered effect. Repeating this pattern throughout the yard gives a sense of unity and structure. By consistently thinking about plant height selection and intentionally mixing tall, medium and short plants for landscaping, you can design borders that look full, balanced and attractive from early spring to late fall, even in limited spaces where compact plants for small gardens are essential. When you consciously match plant height selection to the flower height of each variety, your garden gains depth, rhythm and a polished appearance that highlights every bloom and makes the most of each plant’s natural plant height.