Hanging Basket Blog May 2011
Well it’s spring at last – time to finally get to planting your
hanging baskets and hanging planters.
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For some inspiration Proven Winners Spring Magazine - Proven Beauty -
is now available online and has some inspiring ideas, articles and lots
of great photos – all in time for spring
The magazine has a couple of great articles we really liked:
- Adding Color to outdoor living Space…
- Refresh Repaint and Repot – turning old containers into new (a
great idea as no doubt like us you have a few pots and planters
tucked away)
They are also offering a
free 28 page gardeners idea book.
Also featured this spring – are white flowers. The article “Elegant
White” highlights some of the great white flowering proven winner plants
that are ideal for hanging baskets, hanging planters and containers.
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Two Great Plants for All White Hanging Baskets
Highlighted are two of our favorite plants for hanging baskets and
hanging planters – Silvery Moon Super bells and Snow Princess Alyssum.
Silvery Moon Super Bells.jpg)
There is nothing more super than Super bells. If there was a word
that meant extra, extra super it still wouldn’t be as super as we are.
Calibrachoas are a new type of plants that sort of look like little
Petunias, which makes sense seeing as we’re related. Only Super bells
aren’t sticky, perk right back up after it rains, and stay compact and
bushy even when we’re stressed. Super bells are Proven Winners’ newest
Calibrachoas. We’re the ones covered with hundreds of flowers from early
spring all the way through those first light frosts. Just 6 - 10 inches
tall, our long, long, trailing branches cascade over the sides of
hanging baskets and other containers, and spread over flower beds.
Hummingbirds are cuckoo about us.
Vigor, heat tolerance and resistance to disease are traits we all
share. So is being an annual except in zones 9 - 11. You don’t have to
deadhead old flowers or pinch back stems. Water only when the top of the
soil feels dry. Too much water makes our roots rot (Icky). Full sun.
Fertilize once a month. How extra double super easy is that?
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Snow Princess
Every once in a great while there is a new plant introduced that so
totally redefines a well-known garden stalwart that the perception of
the whole class is changed forever. Snow Princess the Genus Lobularia -
commonly known as alyssum, is one such plant.
Many of you are no doubt familiar with older alyssums. Alyssum was a
great plant to put out before threat of frost had passed. It would
flower like crazy as long as the temperatures were cool. However, at the
first hint of heat and humidity the plants would fry and die.
Snow Princess changed all of that. She is truly heat tolerant,
thriving in summer conditions all over the U.S. and Canada. We heard
from a nursery in Miami, Florida that she bloomed through the summer in
their trial. I'm still amazed by her blooming through the summer in
Miami!
Snow Princess is super vigorous. So vigorous, in fact, that careful
plant selection is necessary when growing her in combination planters.
If she is paired with plants that aren't vigorous enough Snow Princess®
will simply swallow them up and keep on growing. She seems to be less
likely to eat other plants for lunch when planted in the landscape, but
it is a good idea to give her elbow room anyway. Since many plants can't
keep up with Snow Princess® in combinations, you will want to choose
vigorous plants that can match her performance.
Snow Princess is also fragrant - not just a little bit fragrant, she
is truly, wonderfully fragrant. If you watch small children, they will
almost invariably smell flowers because they know flowers should smell
good. So often this isn't true, but it's great when you can get an
incredibly fragrant plant.
Snow Princess is also nicely cold tolerant - capable of withstanding
frost in the fall. She is well-branched and doesn't need deadheading.
She will do best with full sun - a minimum of six hours of sun a day
will work, but more sun is better. She does not take well to drought,
especially in containers. Her one and only drawback is that in
containers you will need to water often to keep her happy.
In the News
We love reading about all things to do with plants, flowers and of
course hanging baskets.
Here are some recent articles – we came across that we all enjoyed.
The article on Ducks made us laugh – it is always great how nature
can turn up something so unexpected.
Hanging Baskets for Birds, Humming Birds and
Butterflies
Using hanging baskets to attract birds and butterflies was also well
written. We love the idea of hanging lots of butterflies and birds –
especially humming birds in the yard – and we really enjoy watching them
and their antics.
We have a previous article on humming birds in hanging baskets
And one on butterflies in hanging baskets.
 Foliage
in Hanging Baskets
This is another great article we really enjoyed.
We love combinations of Foliage in Hanging baskets and hanging
planters.
When you are choosing the plants for a mixed hanging basket we
usually recommend having a combination of bushy and trailing foliage
plants.
Variegated trailing foliage such as glacier ivy, vinca vine and
variegated creeping Charlie or flowering trailers such as verbena,
fuchsia, lantana, or ivy geranium are all good choices spilling over the
side of your basket.
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love Wandering Jew – what a performer. Last year one of our team had one
hanging baskets that thrived on twice weekly watering and looked great
all summer long.
Plan on using at least three trailing foliage plants per basket.
Space them about a quarter of the distance you would set them in the
garden. Avoid overcrowding. Root balls can touch, but don't squish to
make them fit.
Primp your plants weekly, clipping spent flowers, dead foliage as
well as old stems. Dead material can lead to disease and insect
problems. Be sure to check underneath the heavy growth on a regular
basis.
When the foliage begins to get leggy--prune it. The most effective
method of pruning is to cut the stems severely, straight across the rim
of the pot. It's brutal but in a few weeks it will grow out and start
blooming with its old vigor.
More on foliage in our previous article here.
New Products
 New
Contemporary Planters - Green Bo Planters
We have been trialing these great new planters from Green Bo and we
will have share more on our success with these in our April Blog.
Made in Europe from high quality UV protected polypropylene, the GreenBo
railing planters are designed to grow flowers or herb gardens without
any screws, nails or brackets.
GreenBo planters free up valuable balcony space for those with
limited space and allow better use of outdoor area for relaxation and
enjoyment – which is great.
At the same time, these railing planters eliminate any rusting and
damages to walls, banisters and fences.
To order Greenbo planters from us email us at
helpdesk@gardensquirrel.com
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Butterfly Lights
These are really cute and we are all going to be ordering some – for
this summer.
We first saw these at a friend’s house late last year and they were
such a hit that we were all clambering to know where they came from.
They look great not only in the garden – but they look amazing in
your hanging baskets.
Click here for more info
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