What to Plant with Verbena

With its long bloom season, heat tolerance, and wide range of growth habits, Verbena is one of the most versatile blooming plants in the modern garden. From spreading groundcover types to airy pollinator favorites and compact container selections, Verbena plays well with an incredible variety of companion plants. But the plants you pair with Verbena can dramatically influence how it performs and how your garden looks. This Blog will help you discover what to plant with Verbena in garden beds, borders, and containers, so you can build a cohesive, low-maintenance landscape filled with color and movement.

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By: Reggie Meehan (01/28/2026)

Benefits of Companion Planting with Verbena

I’ve leaned on Verbena for years because it’s one of those plants that just works with almost everything you put around it. The low-growing varieties quietly fill in gaps and tie plantings together, while the taller types add movement and height without shading out their neighbors—I’ve used both in the same bed more times than I can count. 

One of my favorite tricks is pairing Verbena with bold foliage or upright bloomers; it adds depth and keeps a planting from feeling flat or overly uniform. Beyond looks, Verbena is a magnet for bees and butterflies, especially the taller Lollipop Verbena, which I’ve watched buzz with activity from morning until evening. It also holds up beautifully in heat and dry spells once established, which makes it easy to pair with other sun-loving, water-wise plants. When you plan around Verbena’s strengths, you end up with gardens that stay colorful, lively, and surprisingly low maintenance all season long.

What to Plant with Verbena in the Garden

When I’m deciding what to plant with Verbena, I always start by matching sun and water needs—it saves headaches later and keeps everything looking good longer. I learned that lesson years ago after mixing Verbena with thirstier plants and watching the Verbena thrive while everything else sulked.

Sun-Loving Annuals

In full sun gardens, Verbena performs best when it’s paired with plants that either add height or bring a completely different bloom shape to the mix. Annual Salvia is especially valuable—it rises cleanly above Verbena, adds vertical interest, and stays tough through heat without competing at the root level. Coleus brings a completely different kind of contrast, with bold patterns and rich colors that play beautifully against Verbena’s fine-textured blooms. I’ve found that mixing strong foliage with Verbena keeps plantings interesting even on days when the flowers take a short break, and that’s what makes a garden feel intentional instead of accidental.

Drought-Tolerant Perennials

When I’m building a bed that has to survive real summer heat and dry stretches, I pair Perennial Verbena with plants that won’t need extra water or attention. Coreopsis is one I reach for often—its upright, daisy-like blooms add brightness and structure above spreading Verbena without competing for space. Achillea is another favorite, bringing flat-topped flowers and ferny foliage that contrast beautifully with Verbena’s fine texture while thriving in lean soils. And when I want height and movement without heaviness, Gaura is hard to beat; its airy white or pink blooms dance above Verbena, echoing that same light, effortless feel. Together, these plants create a layered, drought-tolerant planting that stays colorful, balanced, and remarkably low maintenance all summer long.

Note: I don’t recommend mixing annual Verbena varieties in beds with true perennials unless you’re gardening in very warm climates (USDA Zone 9 and up). Keeping perennials with perennials makes maintenance, spacing, and long-term garden planning much easier and more predictable.

Perennials with Pollinator Power

When pollinators are the goal, perennial Verbena pairs beautifully with other nectar-rich plants that thrive in sun and heat. Agastache is one of my favorite companions—its upright flower spikes rise above spreading Verbena and stay loaded with bees from early summer well into fall. Bee Balm adds bold color and strong pollinator activity, creating a vibrant mid-layer that complements Verbena’s lighter, ground-hugging blooms. And for gardeners who want to support butterflies beyond just nectar, Milkweed is an easy addition; it thrives in the same sunny, well-drained conditions while providing essential habitat for monarchs. Together, these plants turn a Verbena planting into a true pollinator corridor that stays active, colorful, and low maintenance all season long.

Plants to Avoid Pairing with Verbena

Avoid pairing Verbena with shade-loving or moisture-dependent plants, because their needs just don’t line up. Plants like Impatiens and Hostas prefer cooler conditions and consistently moist soil, while Verbena thrives in full sun and drier, well-drained ground. I’ve seen these combinations fail more than once—the Verbena looks great while its neighbors struggle, or worse, extra watering meant to help the shade plants ends up causing root issues for the Verbena. Mixing these two types usually leads to uneven growth and unnecessary maintenance.

I also steer clear of overly aggressive or incompatible spreaders that can overwhelm Verbena’s space. Plants like Mint, Lemon Balm, and Some Ornamental Grasses spread quickly and compete heavily for water and nutrients, often crowding out Verbena before the season is over. On the flip side, very slow-growing or delicate perennials can get lost next to Verbena’s fast growth and nonstop bloom.

How to Use Verbena in Pots & Containers

Verbena is one of my most reliable container plants, as long as you give it sun, drainage, and a little room to stretch. I like to start with a pot that’s at least 12–18 inches wide, especially for spreading or vigorous varieties, so the roots aren’t cramped by mid-summer. Full sun really matters here—six to eight hours a day keeps plants compact and blooming instead of leggy. Always use a well-draining potting mix and containers with drainage holes; Verbena hates sitting in wet soil. I also rotate my pots every couple of weeks to keep growth even and balanced. With its range of upright, mounding, and trailing habits, Verbena fits naturally into the Thriller, Filler, Spiller method, making container design easy and forgiving.

Using Verbena as a Thriller

I’ve used Verbena bonariensis ‘Vanity’ as a Thriller more times than I can count, but one of my favorites was a large patio container where I paired it with mounding lantana and trailing scaevola. Vanity rose cleanly above everything else, adding height and constant movement, while still letting plenty of light reach the plants below. That see-through structure is what makes tall Verbena so special—it gives you vertical interest without turning the container into a shaded mess. By mid-summer, the container was buzzing nonstop with bees and butterflies, and Vanity never once flopped or blocked its neighbors.

Using Verbena as a Filler

For Fillers, I lean on EnduraScape™ Verbenas because they do exactly what a filler should—spread evenly, bloom hard, and tie everything together. I remember using EnduraScape™ Red in a mixed container with Ornamental Grasses and Upright Salvia, and it completely knitted the planting into one cohesive piece. It filled gaps quickly, stayed dense through heat, and never needed fussing. When I want a tighter, more controlled look, especially in smaller pots, Lanai® Verbenas do the same job with a little more restraint.

Using Verbena as a Spiller

When I want a dependable Verbena spiller that can handle heat and still look good, I reach for Homestead Purple or Homestead Hot Pink. These varieties naturally trail and drape, making them excellent choices for hanging baskets and elevated containers where you want soft, flowing edges. I’ve used them in baskets paired with upright plants like coleus or grasses, and they always spill just enough to make the container feel full without becoming messy. What I appreciate most is how they keep blooming through heat and dry spells—long after other spillers start to fade. For baskets in sunny spots, Homestead Verbenas bring color, movement, and reliability all season long.

Pairing Verbena for a Colorful, Thriving Garden

When paired thoughtfully, Verbena becomes more than just a filler—it becomes a unifying design element that ties gardens together with color, movement, and life. Whether anchoring beds, filling containers, or weaving through pollinator gardens, Verbena rewards gardeners with season-long performance and effortless beauty. Ready to add Verbena to your garden? Explore our Best Varieties and enjoy vibrant blooms that thrive all season long.