PNW 3-Pot Starter Garden (Beginner Project You Can’t Mess Up)

If you’re new to Pacific Northwest gardening, this is the easiest way to go from “I have nothing” to “I have plants that are actually thriving.”

No raised beds. No complicated pruning. No fancy gear.

Just three pots, the right soil, and a simple watering rhythm that works with our cool springs and dry summers.

By the end, you’ll have:

• 1 pot you can harvest from (herbs)

• 1 pot that brings life (pollinators)

• 1 pot that looks good in shade (foliage + structure)

And once you’ve done this, everything else feels less intimidating.

“If you can keep three pots alive, you can grow a garden.”

Quick overview (what you’re making)

Pot 1: The “Kitchen Herbs” Pot (sun / part sun)

Low effort, high reward, and you can actually use it.

Plants: Chives + Thyme + Oregano

• Chives = easiest “I can’t kill this” herb

• Thyme = loves sun, doesn’t need much water

• Oregano = spreads, tough, and blooms for pollinators if you let it flower

Pot 2: The “Pollinator Pot” (sun / part sun)

Fast blooms + constant activity.

Plants: Sweet Alyssum + Calendula (or Cosmos)

• Sweet alyssum = the easiest flowering filler

• Calendula = cheerful, easy, long blooming (cosmos is also great)

Pollinator Patch Collection

Pot 3: The “Shade Saver” Pot (shade / part shade)

This pot is for the reality of PNW gardens: shade and damp.

Plants (choose one combo):

• Option A (most foolproof): Hosta + Heuchera

• Option B (more “PNW woodland”): Western Sword Fern + Hellebore

• Option C (small + tidy): Heuchera + Autumn Fern

Shade & Dappled Light Collection

Shopping list (buy exactly this)

Pots + soil

• 3 pots, 10–12 inch diameter (each must have drainage holes)

• 3 matching saucers (optional, but helpful)

• 1–2 bags potting mix (look for “container/potting mix,” not garden soil)

• Optional but nice: a small bag of compost (mix 20% compost into potting mix)

Tools (minimal)

• Small hand trowel (or a big spoon works)

• Gloves (optional)

• Watering can OR a hose with a gentle sprayer

Add-ons (optional but beginner-friendly)

• Feed the soil gently.

• A bag of bark mulch (just a thin top layer reduces drying in summer)

What Soil Should I Buy?

Use a high-quality organic potting mix for containers (not garden soil).

Good PNW options:

• G&B Organics Potting Soil

• FoxFarm Ocean Forest

• Whitney Farms Organic Potting Mix

• Cedar Grove Potting Mix

If it feels light and fluffy when dry, you’re good.

Step 1: Pick your “light level” (30 seconds)

Stand where the pots will go and decide:

• Full sun: 6+ hours of direct sun

• Part sun / part shade: 3–6 hours

• Shade: under trees / north side / only a little morning light

If you’re not sure:

morning sun counts, afternoon sun is stronger.

When in doubt, choose plants that tolerate part shade.

Step 2: Set up the pots (10 minutes)

1. Put the pots where they’ll live.

   (When pots are full of wet soil, they get heavy.)

2. If your pots have huge drainage holes, cover them with:

• a small piece of mesh, or

• a flat rock, or

• a scrap of weed cloth

  Don’t block drainage — just stop soil from washing out.

1. Fill each pot with potting mix to about 2 inches below the rim.

2. Water the soil once to “settle” it.

   (So it doesn’t collapse later and bury your plants too deep.)

Step 3: Plant each pot (this is the foolproof method)

The golden rule

Don’t plant deeper than the plant is already sitting in its nursery pot.

Most beginner plant deaths come from planting too deep + soggy soil.

Pot 1: Herbs (Chives + Thyme + Oregano)

Spacing idea: triangle layout

1. Take the plants out of their nursery pots.

2. If roots are tightly circling, gently loosen the bottom with your fingers.

3. Place them:

• Chives near the center

• Thyme near an edge (it can trail)

• Oregano opposite edge (it spreads)

1. Backfill soil, press gently, water.

• Chives

• Thyme

• Oregano

Pot 2: Pollinator Pot (Sweet Alyssum + Calendula OR Cosmos)

If you want the simplest version: Sweet alyssum + calendula

1. Put calendula/cosmos in the center (it’s your “taller feature”)

2. Plant sweet alyssum around the edge as a living border

3. Water in

This pot will look a little sparse at first… and then suddenly it fills in.

• Sweet Alyssum:

• Calendula

• Cosmos

Pot 3: Shade Saver Pot (pick one combo)

Option A (easiest): Hosta + Heuchera

• Hosta = big leaves, forgiving

• Heuchera = color, evergreen-ish, hardy

Plant hosta center/back, heuchera near edge.

• Hosta:

• Heuchera

Option B (woodland vibe): Sword Fern + Hellebore

Fern for structure, hellebore for winter/spring magic.

• Western Sword Fern

• Hellebore

Step 4: Watering plan (the part that makes this succeed)

Week 1–2 (establishing)

• Check daily

• Water when the top 1 inch feels dry

Week 3–6

• 2–3 times per week depending on weather

• In hot weeks, you might water more often

“Containers dry out faster than ground soil — that’s the only rule you really need to remember.”

Summer rule (PNW dry season)

Containers dry out faster than ground soil.

If temps jump, your pots may need water every day or every other day.

How to tell if it’s time:

Stick a finger in the soil. If it’s dry down to your first knuckle, water.

Step 5: The “do I need fertilizer?” answer

Not right away.

Good potting mix already contains nutrients.

But after 4–6 weeks, container plants benefit from a gentle boost.

Instead of synthetic fertilizers, choose:

• Organic granular fertilizer

• Worm castings mixed into the top layer

• A diluted organic liquid feed

Think of it as feeding the soil, not forcing the plant.

I don’t use synthetic fertilizers like Miracle-Gro in my garden. Slow, organic feeding builds healthier soil and more resilient plants over time.

What success looks like (so you don’t second-guess)

Herbs pot:

• Chives stand up and get taller

• Thyme stays compact but looks perky

• Oregano starts to spread sideways

Pollinator pot:

• Sweet alyssum starts filling the edges

• Calendula/cosmos starts pushing buds

• You’ll see bees first, then more life

Shade pot:

• Slow and steady growth

• Leaves look firm, not limp

• Shade plants don’t “explode” — they settle in