I am not sure what you mean by a 'natural' looking garden, can you be more specific? Do you mean you don't want architectural plants?

My view is a 'natural looking garden' doesn't have containers it has plants growing in the ground - but that is just me...

Hello Flowerpower :))
You can grow just about anything in a pot, as long as you water it well and keep it well fed. My garden is pretty "natural looking" (I think....) and I grow anything from climbers, roses, clematis, perennials, shrubs, herbs, veg, fruit, bulbs and annuals in pots (over 400 of them ;)

I agree with MG, although I grow plants in pots they do not look 'natural' to me as they do in the ground. But then a patio is not natural but can look very good in a garden.

A large chunk of my plants are pot grown. For a classic look I use terracotta pots - these are better suited to plants with small flowers, as they tend not to draw the eye away. For the more showy or exotic, I go for glazed pots that will compliment the blooms.
To my eyes, some plants will never look natural in pots; these tend to be the classic cottage garden plants such as Foxglove, Delphinium etc. Even in this group there are exceptions (Sidelcea springs to mind).
Then there are others that look wrong in the ground; Zauschneria (Californian Fuchsia) has a low growing spreading habit - in a tomato pot the branches hang over the edges with the flowers hanging gracefully in the air instead of sitting on the ground.
Fuchsias will always look right in pots (in my opinion), whereas Penstemon tend to look better in a bed.
Basically, it's trial and error!

You put that very well Meanie, I grow Cape Fuchsias in pots as they look at their best this way.

It also help to keep Cape Fuchsia in check as well Drc!!!

I note now that the question says large pots - as Drc says, Phygelius would look good in a pot and should grow to a reasonable specimen. What about Lilies?
The tender/exotic plants do look more in place in large pots though. Canna Lily, Eucomis, Datura, Iochroma and Sollya heterophylla are my specimens in large pots.

A Crinum looks good in a big pot too. One big bulb or offset will set up a colony over time and look very impressive for a few years, till they run out of steam. In the ground they can get to be a bit of a hulk after a while but very natural looking!

your question actualy contradicts itself as the others have pointed out i guess you could cover the pot part or bury the pot but i wouldnt as you mite asswell put them in the groundwear itwill be happier anyway .its like saying your building a house but you want the land to look like its not lived on . you could build natural stonewalls and put the pots behind the wall to stop you seeing them .

Plants can go in pots and look very 'natural' looking if they are tiered and varied in height and genus. The pots are mostly hidden. I suspect that a great many 'gardens' at shows are really buried pots. So they can be hauled away by someone after the show is over. If you are good at cuttings, growing seeds, growing on and have the facility to do this. Cunning pot arrangements are a valid way of gardening some of your garden. If you are someone who likes 'moving the furniture' then this sort of potty gardening is for you. Puleeeese don't put things that want to grow big fast in small pots......that's all I ask!

I notice FLowerpower has not responded. I do hope you get something from this blog? Gardening is really all about what works for you? and our opinions are only that.

i couldnt of explained gardening any better drc726

:))

Dorjac all 'show gardens' are created with things in pots - even the huge trees are in containers in the indoor areas.

i think i like the different heights and just happen to have 2 big pots that were already here when i moved in

I've just been reading the responses and getting a feel for the site.
bamboo - I like cottage type gardens and different heights of flowers and plants, things not too structured.
noseypotter - I suppose i was asking for help and ideas as to what to put in the pots rather than asking if you thought it was something I should or shouldn't be doing, although i'm quite happy to 'listen' to advice from people as I'm just starting out :0)

Right, so not architectural stuff then - as everyone else has said, the trick is to have different sized pots, clustered with tall ones at the back, with, naturally enough, the taller, larger plants in the back and so on. If you want it to look okay in the winter though, consider planting a couple of the larger ones with evergreen shrubs of some kind to give a framework for all the other stuff - cottage garden type planting disappears in the winter.

no worries flower we all got to start somewear .the 2 pots mite look better as a blatent centre of interest or as a kind of entrance into your natural garden that then becomes natural looking . id be inclined to havethem very formal to the point of planting two identical shrubsetc in them .id place them round your garden empty with your garden ideas in mind and keep moving them till rthey look there best . they mite look good strate outside your back door either side and then go more natural cottagy . like a grand entrance . id also keep looking at different potted plants to see what you realy like .i hope i helped and i was only trying to help honest . take care good luck . still got to be said a photo of your garden would be a lot better as it would be easier to get a feal for your garden .

Thanks for your help bamboo and nosey, some really good tips there noseypotter.:0)
ps. i have put a little picture of a bit of planting that's been done. maybe i'll add a bigger pic so people get the feel of how it is now even if it IS a mess! :)

Meanie, Re: Canna Lily, Eucomis, Datura, Iochroma and Sollya heterophylla - I just looked these up, they're gorgeous! thanks for the ideas

puddleduck & dorjac - thanks very much for the help too. Lots of ideas and i could put overhanging things in the pots too couldn't i? they don't need to be tall. I appreciate all the info off everyone. Brill! :0)

Grasses such as Miscanthus sinensis 'Zebrinus' - Zebra grass can look good in big pots as they sway about, standing behind Heucheras.

your more than welcome flowerpower x .