Hanging Baskets

There are many things that signify summer’s arrival: the smell of food cooking on a barbecue, bright red, sunburned faces, a hosepipe ban, scorched grass and stinging insects, but one of our favourites is the sight of hanging baskets wherever you go. Whilst autumn and winter hanging baskets are becoming increasingly more popular, they can still suffer from the elements and don’t offer quite so much variety; summer hanging baskets… well, there’s no end to the possibilities.

Ready-made baskets are always available here at Brookside from mid-May onwards, so if you’re not ready to try your hand this year, there’s no need to miss out completely; if you’re wanting to take the plunge and plant them yourself, however, we have a few tips to help you get the most out of your creations.

Possibly the most important factor is timing. Frosts can still occur here in the South East as late as May, so if the weather is great during the day, and you want to create your baskets early, be sure to protect them from the cold at night, preferably by removing them to a warmer location. From the end of May onwards, frosts leave us alone for around five months, so hanging baskets will be safe left outside.

So what do you need to make hanging baskets? Obviously, there’ll be a basket of some description, some plants and some compost, but there are a few extras to make the task easier, so here’s a more constructive list:

1 Basket
2 Liner
3 Plastic sheet
4 Scissors, hand trowel, pot or bucket for support*
5 Compost
6 Plants
7 Plant feed
8 Water-retaining gel (potentially)
9 Watering can / Hosepipe

*Just so we’re clear, the scissors, trowel and bucket are tools for planting, not decorative items to add to your baskets! Scissors are needed to cut holes in liners – see below – a hand trowel makes adding compost easier, and a large pot or bucket will hold your basket upright as you create your masterpiece.

1 So, the world of baskets is almost as varied as the world of plants, but whether you choose plastic, rattan, wicker, wire wood, or any number other baskets available, the bigger the better. Bigger will obviously mean higher costs for everything – more compost, more plants – but the result will be far more varied and impressive.

2 There are less options for liners, but some baskets will be pre-lined, so if you opt for those, ignore the rest of this paragraph. For those that are not, you have the choice of coir or jute – often pre-formed – or sphagnum moss; you could even use moss form your own garden, if you have an abundance of it. Check the diameter of your basket and choose a corresponding liner to save costs and time.

3 Once your lining’s in place, it’s a good idea to add a layer of plastic sheeting to help keep water in the basket, snipped here and there to prevent waterlogging.

4 If you’ve opted for a wire basket with a liner, you can cut small holes in the liner, between the wire and add more plants to give the whole thing a more rounded look, just be mindful of where you place your trailing plants. Fill the basket with compost before filling the holes with plants and adding more compost.

5 Speaking of compost… Container & Basket Plant Mix (Peat Free) has been specially formulated to prolong the flowering of your basket plants. It contains water retaining granules – which negates the need to add gel and offers protection from particularly dry summer days – along with seaweed granules that are released over a 6 month period to feed your plants through the flowering season. If you don’t have enough baskets to warrant a whole bag of this mix, Jack’s Magic All Purpose Compost will work well. Like the Container & Basket Mix, it’s peat-free, enriched with seaweed and formulated to retain moisture, so your plants should be well cared for, and missing the occasional day’s watering shouldn’t mean the end of your plants.

6 When it comes to plants, it really depends on your own personal taste. Most bedding plants will be suitable for hanging baskets, but you want variety, even if you stick to a colour scheme. Upright plants will give your creation height, plants with striking flowers and/or foliage will offer more interest, and trailing plants will give a more fluid look. Annuals are more often used, but you can add perennials if you prefer or a combination of the two. Popular flowering plants for hanging baskets are as follows:

Bacopa
Begonias
Busy Lizzies
Calibrachoa
Diascia 
Fuchsias
Geraniums (Pelargoniums)
Lobelia
Mini dahlias
Nasturtiums
Nemesia
Osteospermum
Petunias
Upright geraniums
Verbena

These are just suggestions; you really are at liberty to add whatever you like, and if you find something doesn’t work this year, you’ll know for next year.

Creeping Jenny, Helichrysum, Ipomea, Ivy and Nepeta work well as trailing plants and add more foliage to your displays; alpines would obviously need less water, so can be a great alternative. But, you can also use your hanging baskets to grow herbs – either with or without bedding plants – strawberries and tomatoes, particularly cherry varieties. They’re your baskets, do with them what you will!

Although you have complete creative freedom over your baskets, it’s advisable to place an upright plant on the centre, with a combination of small upright plants and trailing plants around the edges. As mentioned above, if you’ve cut holes in the sides of your baskets to place extra plants, avoid placing trailing plants directly above them that could cover them completely as they grow.

7 Plant feed is especially important if you have a great number of plants in your baskets. Bedding plants will need more watering, particularly in hanging baskets, and frequent watering depletes the nutrients contained in the compost. If you opt for the composts we’ve suggested above, you’re off to a great start, but as the season progresses, you may need to offer a feed or two to prolong the life of your baskets.

8 Many composts – particularly Westland, the brand we stock at Brookside – contain water-retention granules, so water-retaining gel will not be necessary. Check the compost you buy, and if it’s not formulated in the same way, be sure to grab some water-retaining crystals or granules.

9 OK, maybe the watering can is obvious, but whether you use a watering can or a hosepipe, you’ll need a fine spray to ensure you don’t flatten your plants. Watering the compost gently is the aim – you don’t want to disturb it if possible – but your plants will be happy for a little water on the flowers and foliage, so long as it’s not a scorching day. Water gently but thoroughly once your baskets are full and daily once in situ.

As the weather improves and your plants grow, you’ll need to deadhead regularly to prolong the life of your plants; check every time you water, and it should be easy to keep on top of the process. An occasional liquid feed will also benefit your plants, even with enriched compost, and no matter where you place your baskets, it’s advisable to rotate them from time-to-time so your plants grow evenly.

And that’s it! An hour or two’s work, and your home could be adorned with the beauty of the season. Be vigilant with frosts, deadhead and water regularly, and that beauty could see you right through to the autumn. If you don’t have the time or patience, however, ours are already planted-up and will be ready to buy towards the end of May; with the right care, they, too, will provide you with glorious colour for summer, and that’s far more appealing than scorched grass or stinging insects!