Tropical Tabletop Water Garden

One of the things I try to convey about outdoor living spaces is that you don’t need a lot of room to create a beautiful place to relax. Even a small patio is ample in size to create an inviting retreat. This container garden is a perfect example of how you can enjoy a water fountain in the smallest of spaces.

Materials Needed for a Tabletop Water Garden

  • Shallow container without a drainage hole
  • Plants
  • Small Stone to weigh down pump
  • Pebbles to weigh down plants
  • Pieces of brick or square stone to elevate the potted plants if needed
  • Small electric pump
  • Water

Tabletop Water Garden

Directions for Making a Tabletop Water Garden

Place a small electric pump inside the bowl and weigh it down with a stone, then pull the cord over the back rim of the bowl.

Position the planted pots inside the container to conceal the electrical cord. Depending on the height of the container, you may want to put shorter pots on pieces of brick to display them at varying heights. Sprinkle pebbles on top of the containers to keep them from floating.

Fill the container with water to about 2-inches from the top of the pots. Plug in the pump and enjoy!.

Good to Know

Ideally, a container without a drain hole is best, but if you fall in love with a pot that already has a hole and really want to turn it into a fountain you can easily plug it. Just place a piece of duct tape inside the pot over the hole. On the underside of the pot fill the hole with plumber’s epoxy. Then level it out with your fingers so that it is even with the sides of the hole. When it dries, remove the duct tape on the inside of the pot.

Tabletop Water Garden

Plants Used in this Water Garden

  • Creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia) – Creeping Jenny will grow in both standing water or in the ground. It’s an excellent groundcover, so along with fountain gardens I also like using it between stepping-stones. When planted in the ground it likes well-drained soil and full sun to partial shade.
  • Cardinal flower ‘Queen Victoria’ (Lobelia cardinalis) – I love the burgundy foliage of this plant. It’s a slo a good choice for areas in the garden where the soil stays moist.
  • Variegated sweet flag (Acorus gramineus)- This grass-like plant is one of my favorites for containers and in the garden. It prefers moist soil so don’t let it dry out.
  • Calla lily (Zantedeschia aethiopica) – Calla lilies are popular for their flute shaped blooms, but I love the foliage too. And like the other plants in this water garden, calla lily bulbs can be planted in the ground as well. Bloom production tends to wane over the years, but they will continue to produce the interesting foliage.