Beautiful Hanging Baskets To Buy

What you need before you can start

You can find most of these items at Woolpit Nurseries including a large selection of plants:
– Hanging basket
– Liner for the basket which may be fibrous or moss from the garden
– Terracotta pot or bucket
– Scissors
– Multipurpose compost
– A selection of suitable plants.

Choosing plants for your hanging basket

You can then choose plants and colour schemes to suit yourself from our a wide range of suitable plants from late April onwards.

For a 14″ basket, the Woolpit Nurseries team would recommend one upright plant for the centre surrounded by a mix of 4-6 trailing and semi-trailing plants. A mix of trailing and upright plants works well, with plants such as geraniums, begonias, petunias, fuchsias to name a few.

Line your basket

Place your basket in a pot or a bucket to keep it stable whilst you work. Then fit the liner inside the basket and then snip a few holes in it so that water can drain out. This also allows you to plant trailing plants around the sides through the liner.

Add the compost

Use top quality peat-free multipurpose compost such as Jiffy Professional Peat Free Compost or Melcourt Sylvagrow Peat-Free Multipurpose Compost as stocked at Woolpit Nurseries. These peat free composts contain a variety of organic, sustainable ingredients as an alternative to peat.  But if you plan to include winter flowering heathers, use ericaceous compost.

Half-fill the basket with multipurpose compost using the trowel. If you plan to go away, you can mix in moisture-absorbing granules or use moisture absorbing compost that can retain twice as much water as ordinary compost to help your basket stay moist.

Start planting hanging baskets

Next position your plants in the basket. For a 14″ basket, the Woolpit Nurseries team would recommend one upright plant for the center to create structure and impact, surrounded by a mix of 4-6 trailing and semi-trailing plants. Or you may choose to plant the whole basket with a single plant type.

Once you are happy with the arrangement, then fill the basket with compost to the top, gently firm down and water.

Your basket is ready

Keep your basket in a sheltered spot until any danger of late frosts have passed generally late May. Then position your basket in a sunny sheltered spot. Feed and water regularly.