How to Make a Graveside Planter: Plants, Pots and Planting Guide for Irish Graves
A graveside planter is a small container of evergreen plants that stays tidy through the year with very little work. Check your cemetery's rules first, then choose a heavy frost-proof pot with drainage, and plant a thriller, fillers and a trailing plant using evergreens such as ivy, Carex and Heuchera, with snowdrops and crocus tucked in for late-winter flowers. This guide covers the rules, the plants, planting counts, three recipes and aftercare.
Rules about planting on graves vary between cemeteries in Ireland and can change. Some council lawn sections do not allow planters at all, so a quick call to the cemetery office saves a lot of upset later.
Why do people plant graves around Halloween and All Souls?
Many families visit and tidy graves around Halloween, All Saints on 1 November and All Souls on 2 November. In Irish tradition the customs recorded for these days include cleaning graves, saying prayers and lighting a candle for the dead, and in many families this has grown into a seasonal visit to freshen the grave. Plenty of others visit on anniversaries, birthdays or at Christmas, so a planter that looks good all year is useful whenever you go.
Across mainland Europe the custom is stronger and more floral: chrysanthemums are the traditional All Saints flower in France, Belgium and Poland, where heather is also sold for graves, and people place plants and candles on graves on 1 November. A planter of living evergreens suits the same idea in a more lasting form, because it does not fade after a few days. If you are choosing a gift for someone grieving rather than planting yourself, our guide to sympathy and memorial plant gifts covers that.
What should you check before planting on a grave?
Check three things with the cemetery office or caretaker before you plant. Cemetery rules in Ireland are set by the council or trust that runs each cemetery, and they differ.
- Whether planters are allowed in your section. Some lawn sections allow only the headstone and no planted flowers, candles or ornaments, while kerbed and older graves often allow planting. Limerick's draft cemetery bye-laws, for example, do not allow shrubs or flowers on lawn-cemetery gravespaces.
- Height and size limits. Galway City Council's code of practice, for example, restricts trees and large shrubs that would grow above about 600mm (2 feet), so choose low, compact plants.
- How the grave must be kept. Councils can ask for neglected or faded items to be removed, so a tidy, easy-care planter helps.
These are examples, not a complete or current statement of any council's rules, so always confirm with your own cemetery.
What makes a good graveside planter?
A good graveside planter is low, heavy, evergreen and forgiving. It should sit in the space you are allowed, resist wind, and still look neat when nobody has visited for a few weeks.
- Heavy and frost-proof: stone, concrete or thick frost-proof terracotta. Light plastic pots blow over and cheap terracotta can crack in frost.
- Drainage holes: always. Put a layer of stones or crocks in the base for weight and drainage.
- Low and compact plants: they cope with wind and stay within height limits.
- Mostly foliage: evergreen leaves look good every month, and flowers come as a bonus.
What are the best plants for a grave planter in Ireland?
What to plant on a grave depends on the light and the rules, but the best choices are evergreens that need little care: ivy to soften the edge, sedges and Heuchera for foliage, clipped evergreen balls for shape and vinca for a trailing flowering cover. They keep their leaves through wet Irish winters, and they are available as young plants in 9cm pots in packs, so one pack plants two or three pots.
| Role | What it does | Plants we stock |
|---|---|---|
| Focal point | Gives height or a clean shape | Ilex crenata balls, BetterBuxus ball, Skimmia |
| Fillers | Evergreen body, texture and colour | Carex Ice Dance, Carex Evergold, Heuchera Palace Purple |
| Trailers | Soften the rim, cover the soil | Ivy Glacier, Irish ivy, white vinca |
| Seasonal extras | Late-winter and spring colour | Snowdrops and early bulbs |
Plant notes
- Ivy (Irish ivy or 'Glacier'): trails and roots into compost, hides pot edges, evergreen all year. Trim it back from the edges once or twice a year.
- Carex sedges (Ice Dance, Evergold): evergreen clumps that need almost no attention and keep their colour in winter.
- Heuchera 'Palace Purple': dark purple-red leaves that look good against stone, with small flowers in summer.
- Vinca minor ('Alba', 'Atropurpurea'): trailing evergreen with small blue, purple or white flowers in spring, and good in part shade.
- Skimmia 'Rubella': glossy evergreen with red buds in winter and scented flowers in spring. It prefers shade, and ours are male plants, so no berries.
- Snowdrops and crocus: small bulbs planted in autumn between the plants, flowering in late winter. They come in large packs, enough for a trough and a border.
How many plants go in a graveside planter?
As a rule of thumb, a 25 to 30cm pot takes about five plants, a 40cm pot about nine, and a trough about 60cm long about eight to ten. These counts are our own planting guide for young plants in 9cm to 15cm pots, planted a little closer than usual so the planter looks full quickly.
| Container | Focal point | Fillers | Trailers | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 25-30cm pot | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 |
| 40cm pot | 1 | 5 | 3 | 9 |
| 60cm trough | 1 to 2 | 4 to 5 | 3 | 8 to 10 |
How do you plant a graveside planter, step by step?
- Check the rules and measure the space you are allowed, then choose a pot that fits.
- Add weight and drainage: a layer of stones or crocks in the base, then a free-draining compost mixed with a handful of grit.
- Plant the focal point first, slightly off-centre or at the back, at the same depth it sat in its pot.
- Add the fillers around it, then place the trailers at the rim, leaning outward.
- Tuck in bulbs between the plants, pointed end up, two to three times their depth.
- Water well once, firm in and top with gravel or fine bark to keep the surface neat and heavy.
What are some graveside planter recipes?
Each recipe uses plants that come in packs of six 9cm pots, so one pack plants two pots with spares for a border at home. Counts are for a 40cm pot or a 60cm trough.
1. Quiet evergreen: clipped ball, silver sedge and ivy
The easiest planter to look after and a good choice for a first one. In each pot: 1 Ilex crenata ball, 3 Carex 'Ice Dance', 2 Carex 'Evergold' and 3 Irish ivy. It stays green and tidy all year and needs little more than a trim in spring.
2. Silver and white: sedge, white vinca and snowdrops
A calm, light scheme that suits shade and stone. In each pot: 1 Skimmia 'Rubella', 3 Carex 'Ice Dance', 2 Vinca minor 'Alba' and 3 Hedera helix 'Glacier', with a handful of snowdrop bulbs planted between in autumn. White vinca flowers in spring, and snowdrops come first.
3. Colour and foliage: Heuchera, gold sedge and trailing vinca
For a brighter spot. In each pot: 1 BetterBuxus ball, 3 Heuchera 'Palace Purple', 2 Carex 'Evergold' and 3 Vinca minor 'Atropurpurea'. The dark purple leaves and gold edges stay interesting in winter, and vinca adds purple flowers in spring. BetterBuxus is bred for improved resistance to box blight.
How do you look after a graveside planter through the year?
- Autumn: plant now. Roots settle into warm soil, and bulbs go in at the same time.
- Winter: little to do. Check pots against walls or under trees for dryness, and clear fallen leaves.
- Spring: tidy dead leaves, trim ivy and vinca from the edges, top up compost and add a slow-release feed.
- Summer: water when the top 2 to 3cm of compost is dry. In hot spells that may be every few days.
- Every two to three years: lift, divide or move plants that have outgrown the pot.
Can you send plants for a grave or in memory of someone?
Plants are delivered to a home or address of your choice, usually in 5 to 8 working days, and you plant them yourself. If you are planting for an anniversary or for All Souls, order by the middle of October to be sure of having them in time. Plants are shipped directly from our partner growers as young plants in growing pots, and the healthy-arrival guarantee applies. For gifts to a bereaved family, see our sympathy plant gift guide.
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