How Seasonal Arrangements Are Designed

What is the Magic Behind an Enliven Planters Arrangement?

We’re always experimenting and refining our container and window box designs. With endless plant options and changing seasons, we work hard to stay at the forefront of plant combinations for our customers.

One question we often get is how we manage to make each design unique while maintaining the high standards of quality and consistency that both we and our customers expect. While we could write a book about all the variables we consider in our designs (our training manual is quite detailed!), at the core of it all lies in the language and design guidelines we’ve developed at Enliven. 

With a team of nearly 50 people, it’s crucial that we all speak the same language and follow a consistent framework. These design guidelines are the foundation of every arrangement that reaches our customers’ homes each season. Below, you’ll find a detailed look at what makes each Enliven arrangement both consistent and unique—principles that even DIY gardeners can use.

Key Elements of an Enliven Arrangement

Every Enliven arrangement includes one or more of the following elements. Whether it’s a 12-inch pot or a 100-foot-long planting bed, you’ll find these key components in our designs:

1. Centerpiece: This plant forms the backbone of the design, providing structure and height. We usually use more mature plants for this, ones that have been growing for 2-3 years. Examples might include a columnar evergreen from the West Coast, a tropical plant from Florida, or a locally grown upright grass. The centerpiece sets the tone for the entire arrangement and gives it a strong vertical element.
2. Upright Foliage: These plants are shorter than the centerpiece and help fill out the body of the arrangement, adding visual depth. Unlike pre-made garden center arrangements, we play with foliage texture, color, and growth habits to enhance our designs beyond just blooms. Examples might include an interesting shrub, a vibrant coleus, or a smaller grass that contrasts with the centerpiece.
3. Upright Bloom: Similar to upright foliage, but chosen for its flowers. These plants might have spires of blooms reaching upward or a cloud of blossoms that weave around the centerpiece and upright foliage. They add height and color, making the arrangement lively and eye-catching.
4. Mounding Foliage: Our mounding foliage plants are where you start to see more repetition within the arrangement, much like the steps of a spiral staircase. These plants fill out the base of the design, staying lower than the upright plants and growing fuller and bushier as the season progresses. Examples might include heuchera, ornamental cabbage, or a mounding coleus. This foliage not only grounds the arrangement but also provides a rich, textured backdrop that enhances the overall visual appeal.
5. Mounding Blooms: Mounding blooms are where you’ll find the unique varieties of staple plants that bring vibrant color to our arrangements. This is a key area where we inject personality and uniqueness into each design. We custom-grow our plants to achieve the perfect balance, using bloom varieties that are rarely found in large quantities at local garden centers. We plan years in advance to ensure that we have the most vigorous and unique plants ready for our designs. Mounding blooms complement the upright blooms and often contrast with the foliage, adding depth and richness to the arrangement. We may use 2-3 varieties of mounding blooms in an arrangement, repeating them strategically depending on the container size. 
6. Trailing Foliage: Trailing foliage is essential for breaking the edge of the container, extending the design downward, and giving it that lush, cascading look that we love. This element is particularly important in our window boxes, where it adds a soft, flowing effect that enhances the overall design. We custom-grow our trailing plants in troughs to jump-start their growth, ensuring they’re ready to spill over the edges by midseason. The roots of these plants need space to grow and support the quick development of trailing stems. We take great care in choosing trailing varieties, as they can be the most prolific growers in a season. We ensure they don’t overpower or outcompete their neighboring plants, especially the blooming ones. The result is a balanced, cascading effect that adds movement and grace to the arrangement.
7. Trailing Blooms: Trailing blooms are the final flourish in our designs, adding a burst of color that spills over the container’s edge. These plants create broad strokes of color that can be seen from a distance, making the arrangement stand out from across the street or down the driveway. The plant industry heavily focuses on these varieties, which gives us a wide range of options to play with in terms of colors, bloom shapes, and subtle bi-color designs. Trailing blooms complete the ensemble, creating a visually stunning display that adds depth, movement, and vibrant color to any space.

A Glimpse Behind the Scenes at Enliven

The elements above are just a summary of the principles behind our designs and give you an idea of the language we use when working through plant ordering, inventory management, and design combinations. Our commitment to innovation and quality is reflected in every detail, from the selection of individual plants to the final arrangement that arrives at your door. We hope to share more insights into the magic of Enliven’s designs in future blog posts, giving you a deeper understanding of what makes our arrangements truly special!