Straw Flowers in Hanging Baskets
For something a little different but certainly dramatic
consider planting a hanging basket of Strawflowers.
Planted alone or mixed in with other annuals strawflower look great and
perform well in hanging baskets and hanging planters. Native to the
Australian Outback, Strawflower is a flower with many names. It is also
known as a Paper Daisy or an Everlasting Daisy.
Botanically they are called Bracteantha bracteata or Helichrysum
bracteatum
Don’t despair if you can’t find these plants at your garden centre they
are easy to grow from seed – see below 
Great in hanging baskets and excellent as a dried flower for floral
arrangements you may become hooked on this great plant.
How to Grow Hanging Baskets of Straw Flowers
Strawflowers like warm, dry conditions so hanging baskets are ideal
for them.
While Strawflowers grow best in full, direct sun they also can be
grown in semi shade / morning sun positions. Strawflowers grow to a
height ranging between eight and thirty-six inches and will spill over
the edges of your hanging basket or hanging planter.
Strawflowers are available in dwarf varieties as well as taller
varieties – we recommend the choosing taller varieties for your hanging
baskets.
WATERING & FERTILIZING YOUR HANGING BASKET
We often see instructions “Water occasionally” or “will withstand
drought” – we recommend to water well, then to let your hanging basket
just dry out before watering it again.
While your strawflower will survive drought conditions it will shrivel
up and take time to recover - and your basket will not look great.
For the healthy happy plants, Strawflowers need moist, but well
drained soil, they don’t like “wet feet” nor do they do well left
without water for several days. For large flowers and plenty of them -
Strawflowers should be fertilized every other week with a low phosphorus
fertilizer. KEEPING YOU BASKET FLOWERING
To keep your hanging basket of Strawflowers looking their best you
must feed them and most important you must deadhead the flowers
regularly to keep the plant(s) looking good.
Deadheading actually encourages continuous blooms.
Strawflowers have a long blooming period, from the middle of summer
until the first frost.
Consider growing strawflowers in your hanging basket if you want annual
flowers that will draw lots of attention from your friends and family.
FLOWERS & FOLIAGE
The colors of strawflowers are unique and extremely vivid so your
baskets will draw lots of comments. Strawflowers are available in
various shades of yellow, orange, tan, red, pink, purple, creamy white
and also available in unique bi-colors. One Gardener wrote of
Strawflowers
”The colorful blooms of strawflowers shimmer in the sunlight, and
they appear to be coated by fine satin varnish.” “The beautiful blooms
of strawflowers are offset by narrow green leaves on tall graceful
stems. The leaves of some varieties of strawflowers are grayish green
and extremely eye-catching” Yes it is true people love strawflowers
for both their lovely foliage as well as the beauty of their brilliant
annual blooms. As Dried Flowers
Strawflowers have an added bonus - they work very well as a dried
flower.
For dried flower arrangements it is often recommended that Strawflowers
should be cut just as they begin to open, then dried head down, hanging
by the stem in a dry, shaded area for a couple of weeks.
For the brightest colors hang your Strawflowers upside down in a dark
and well-ventilated place. After drying take them, untie the flowers
and use them in floral arrangements in a position away from direct
sunlight. As they tend to be brittle – often their bright flowers as
used as in the photo above.
Propagating Strawflower from Seed Strawflowers are easy to grow from
seed. So if you’re searching for strawflowers to grow in your hanging
baskets and can’t find any don’t despair - grow them by seed. The
Great seed company Burpee sell them online – click here for more
http://www.burpee.com/flowers/strawflowers/ Strawflowers take
about 6-8 weeks to grow into seedlings/plants large enough for planting
into hanging baskets.
Grow the seeds in a warm spot somewhere where the temperature is
around 70° F.
Seeds should germinate within 7-10 days.
You can then collect seed for use in your baskets for next year.
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