I have these rubber pots filled with small succulents all over my place and they have held up beautifully. The plants dig them too. I found them at Rose and Radish in Hayes Valley. Ask them to create drainage holes in the bottom for you or do it yourself with a power drill. You can also purchase online:

http://store.roseandradish.com/category-exec/category_id/32/nm/Rubber

Yesterday I installed a garden and found that certain plant color combos like black and chartreuse play with the light in an interesting way. It’s like a micro version of creating color throughout the year, except this bed shows off different colors throughout the day. The chartreuse popped in the late day shade….

…and the black mondo grass kept the bed cool in the hot mid-day sun.

Plants are neat like that.