I have a lot of perennials and usually let them have the pot to themselves.
The annuals - it depends on the plants. Tall ones (marigolds, zinnias, cosmos, etc) I usually plant a bunch of each in their own container along the fence.
If I do mixed plantings, I use the "Thriller-Filler-Spiller" format.
The "Thriller would be the tallest plant - like the canna, dracena spikes, etc. The Filler would be a shorter, bushier plat - like osteospernum, dwarf marigolds, just about anything that grows about 6-8 inches tall. The Spillers are the trailing plants - Sweet potato vine, million bells, petunias are googd (I don't use them 'cuz I don't care for them).
Here's a sample-
Fushia, Million Bells & Diascia

{{gwi:19423}}

I don't do a lot of moving around. I have over 100 pots and it's just too much of a bother to do all that.
I'm LAZY! LOL!
Most of the plants I choose bloom all summer anyway so it's all good.

OoS

Very interesting question.

I am currently experimenting with different combinations in containers to achieve a variety of effects. In most cases, I do not use annuals. While I am a little vague on your exact definition of "staging", I think I may have an idea. Following are examples of my idea of "staging".

I like Hostas in containers. But when they die down in fall, it leaves a blank spot. So, I will try this year to interplant with some Arum species/varieties. In my climate, the Arum will be sending out new leaves about the time that the Hosta disappear. Result: No blank spots, similar cultural/light/water requirements, and similar leaf sizes and textures.

If you like Canna, you may be trying some of the smaller varieties in pots. The flowers and foliage are great. But in winter, all is gone. How about interplanting those cannas with Aspidistra elatior, or something like it? You'll still have foliage (but no flowers) when the cannas go away. The problem with this may be too much sun on the Aspidistra, but if you plant enough cannas, they may be shaded out enough to not be damaged by sun.

In my zone, I can get a continuous display of flowers (even some during the winter, in certain microclimates), with varying combinations of Pelargonium, perennial Dianthus', Gazania, Gaillardia, for instance.

I usually plant my containers with 3 or 5 different species (always an odd number; kind of a zen thing), and I don't always worry about having flowers. I do want, however, to have at least one eye-catching evergreen foliage plant to keep the container interesting year-round when there are no flowers. Some of my foliage plants (some with, some without flowers) include: Fatsia japonica 'Spider's Web' and solid green, various Heuchera, Euonymus japonica and E. fortunei variegated forms, small-leafed variegated and solid green Hedera, Aspidistra elatior, Abutilon species and hybrids, variegated and solid green Ophiopogon, various ferns, and on and on.

I'll keep thinking on it. Have fun. Good luck.

markdpelhamny (BTW-we're neighbors... I'm in Yonkers)
I only buy new plants mid-season if something happened that killed off something in its own pot. Usually annuals. This only happened to me once or twice in 10 years.
I tend to buy perennials that bloom through the season.
For example- last year, this Phlox started blooming at the end of June and went non-stop until the 2nd week of Sept.
{{gwi:19425}}

There's always something blooming somewhere in my yard, which is ALL containers.
I don't obsess about it - I just sit back and enjoy it.

OoS

Hi
I'm in 10 florida so all the rules are different. IMUST stage all the plantings because temperates will not grow in summer and tropicals get nipped on occasion.in winter.
Have a small lot and the soil is about 80 percent sand and 20 percent seashells.lol Even the weeds struggle .Grow mostly in pots also because I grow a lot of winter dormant and summer dormants a lot of dwarfed tropical trees and keep most of the epiphytes in the shadehouse along with the very touchy understory palms. I also keep 3 water gardens and an aviary so planting schemes last about 3 weeks tops. lol
Cannas will grow year around here and flower 10 months depending on the weather. The worst problem is "leaf rollers" part of which I grow as water plants and part wet terrests. Eventually all get so ratty looking I usually cut them to the ground or those in pots I cut and repot. Heliconias are a better choice for me as they are immune to the leaf rollers but are very cold sensitive,
I try to plan on a "cold winter " and "mild winter" as well as a Dry summer or wet summer plan. So no matter what happens something is doing well .lol.
I would have to agree with the others Sit back and experiment and most of all enjoy it!! gary

OOS - it's cool to find someone else interested in gardening in So. Westchester. I find remarkably few people garden in the area. What's your favorite nursery around here? I like Nabel's in Mamaroneck.

Putting plants together in a container is like flower arranging with a moving target - how can I economically and easily keep a series of mixed containers in continuous display? Maybe I'm over-thinking this (it wouldn't be the first time), but I practice intensive cultivation on my vegetable beds, why not in my containers? My interest in mixing annuals and perennials is in part because I bought a bunch of dwarf bulbs on sale and need to justify it to my wife ("it's an investment, sweetheart!") and because I enjoy seed starting annuals and need a new project once everything's planted in the veg garden.

Redneck and Gary, I think what you do is closer to my goals than the style OOS uses, since I'm interested in a mix of plants in a series of larger planters (although OOS's backyard filled with a variety of individual containers is maybe the same thing on a larger scale). But you're both from more temperate zones - I don't even think about winter for my outdoor containers (although maybe I can overwinter some ivies and such in the house). I love the idea Redneck proposes of using ferns (I love ferns but haven't ever grown them), but most of my containers are in full sun so they would probably bake. BTW, yes, they are dwarf cannas.

I guess utlimately what the original post was trying to ask is whether the best way to maintain a larger mixed container is to plant it up all in one go with enough foresight that it looks good for 4-6 months or whether you should constantly be moving new plants in and out as I do in my veg beds. And if you're going to move new plants in and out, do you start in a series of smaller containers and move them to new containers when they're at their peak? With either approach, what plants work well?

It's interesting that everyone named perennials for the most part - I had envisioned more reliance on annuals. I'm going to follow up with a separate post asking for ideas for good container annuals started from seed...

markdpelhamny,

There are some ferns that will tolerate more sun than others. And indeed there are some that will even tolerate drought once established. Ferns of one sort or another can be used is most climate zones.

I'm no fern expert; perhaps ask around the FERNS forum for some ideas.

Hey, Mark-
My garden has always been my "escape" after a day's work. I retired last Aug, so this will be my first year where I can totally enjoy my garden for the entire season. Even then, I'm going to be starting late. I'm going on vacation the last week in May. That's when I usually had everything done. I won't be purchasing any annuals until I return (1st week of June) I'm a bit bummed about it, but I can't do anything about it since I'm not the one who scheduled the trip.

Anyway - I usually like to try something new every year. I have done cantaloupe, pumpkins, gourds and eggplant -which, BTW, I don't even LIKE! But they look cool! LOL!

As for nurseries - I usually go to the ones on the west side of the county, since that's where I am. I've been to Nabel's but it's not that convienent for me.
I have shopped at Tony's (Larchmont, I think) - usually on a Sunday coming from church (in the Bronx).
My favorite is Green Valley in Hawthorne (Rt9) and Sprainbrook Nursery.
Rosedale Garden Center is nice - but pricey. I only buy a couple of things there that I usually don't see in the other places.
I was planning to try Winter Sowing this year but when the trip came up, I put that on the back burner.
I have to rely on Mother Nature to sustain the perennials while I'm gone.

I don't move the plants to bigger containers during the season. I just let them grow were they are.
Even my perennials, when they start getting too crowded in the pot they're in - I just divide them, put part back in their same container and put the other in a new pot of the same size. This is how I ended up with more than 150 pots. LOL!

BTW- There's a plant sale at the Native Plant Center on Saturday, May 3rd. They are located on the campus of WCC in Valhalla. I have some items pre-ordered for pick up next week, but I'll probably go on the 26th to see if there's anything else I might like.
The plants they offer are all native to our area/zone.

OoS

Here is a link that might be useful: The Native Plant Sale