Hanging Basket Happiness: A Care Guide
Hanging baskets are a great way to decorate porches, decks and other places in your yard and garden. Here are some tips for growing and maintaining your hanging baskets, so they keep looking great all summer!
Watering
Check baskets daily for water needs. Get to know how heavy your well-watered basket is. Gently lift up the basket from the bottom and if it feels lighter than usual, water it! Keep in mind that different plants have different water needs–your petunia in full sun will need more water than a fern or impatiens basket in the shade.
You may need to water more than once a day on hot, sunny or windy days. Get into the habit of watering early in the day, as opposed to the evening. This will ensure the plant has water over the course of the day when it needs it. Watering in the morning can also prevent fungus problems which can come from wet foliage overnight.
Try not to let the soil dry out completely. Not only will this cause the plants to wilt, it makes it more difficult to water. When the soil becomes too dry, it shrinks and gets hard, like a dry sponge, and the water you pour in will run out quickly. If this happens, place the basket in a tub of water for a couple of hours. This allows water to be absorbed slowly from the bottom of the container to rehydrate the soil.
Fertilizing
Plants in hanging baskets need regular fertilization with water-soluble fertilizers. Apply soluble fertilizers at full strength every 1 to 3 weeks throughout the summer, or at a more dilute solution more often. We actually fertilize every day here at the greenhouse, lightly!
Read and follow the label directions carefully to apply appropriate amounts of fertilizer.
We use Jack’s brand fertilizers at A+ Garden Center and recommend them highly!
Deadheading & Trimming
Some annual plants require regular deadheading to keep plants in bloom throughout the season. Deadheading is the removal of dead or dying flowers. This prevents seeds from forming and encourages the plant to keep flowering. Geraniums and verbena are the basket flowers you’ll need to deadhead often.
Many new varieties of annuals are “self-cleaning” and don’t require deadheading. These include our awesome petunia and calibrachoa baskets. Smaller blooming plants like lobelia and sweet alyssum are generally “self-cleaning,” meaning deadheading is not necessary.
Inspect your plants as you water and remove any old, dry flowers or leaves. This will keep your hanging baskets fresh looking through the whole summer.
Many hanging baskets will get quite large by mid-summer. Pruning back trailing plants by one-third to one-half can help promote fresh new growth that will be more attractive and produce more flowers for the remainder of the growing season.
