WINTER HANGING BASKETS

I was at the garden centres last week and saw some great hanging baskets. Winter hanging baskets shouldn't be seen as the poor relation to summer displays. Winter displays can be equally alluring although they are subtler. For example I saw a very attractive herb basket. It wasn’t full of colour but it looked marvellous and smelt divine.

Winter baskets are relatively low maintenance.

The occasional water unless unseasonably dry.

In the depths of winter when frost and snow is about, you can stop watering completely as it will freeze the roots. With the onset of a thaw give the plants a good drink. Cold winds can also quickly dry out baskets.

Before planting think about the type of compost to use i.e. if planting heathers use ericaceous compost. Any compost used should be free draining. When planting, remember plants grow more slowly in winter so plant closer together or buy larger ones. Winter baskets - especially those containing winter-flowering plants - should be planted as early as possible as plants will not grow much in the winter and so won't initiate flower buds. Try and have them planted by the end of this article if possible!

CONTAINERS
Here’s a list of some of the popular plants that are available for containers, all of them can be planted out into the garden when it’s time to put in summer flowering plants, or alternatively leave them where they are and they will come back next year.

Violas. Very colourful and very hardy plants. This year we can see even more varieties in the shops.

Winter pansies. There are loads of different colours available. Make sure they are sturdy plants and not too leggy, plant them a bit deeper to stop them wobbling around in the wind. With pansies and violas they will flower a lot longer if you deadhead them regularly. Save the seeds and plant them out in spring.

Trailing ivy. Both plain and variegated ones look good. This plant brings shape to a container and fills them out.

Dwarf conifers. Dark or light green, take your pick.
Primulas and polyanthus. Both will give colour in spring and will spread nicely in the garden for next year. Again there are loads of colours available.

Herbs. Buy small plug plants if you can get them, they will soon fill out and provide plenty of foliage.

Heathers. I’ve found the winter flowering ones grow really well around the peninsula; they will flower well into the spring too.

Bulbs. There is still time to buy bulbs for planting out now. There are fabulous varieties to choose from. Ensure the bulbs are firm and disease free. Varieties such as the dwarf narcissi, crocus, iris and tulips look very effective in containers and flower for a long period.
Small shrubs. Shrubs with berries look effective, such as skimmia. There are many to choose from, try Euonymus for attractive foliage or bay and box for a strong central feature.

All of the plants mentioned are frost hardy and will cope with the worst of the weather. Sometimes just one specimen shrub can look more effective in a container than a lot of colour, for example a clipped box will look stunning on it’s own.

If an instant effect is what you are looking for then plant the plants close together. If you put them in the containers with a bit of room, they will soon fill the gaps as the growing season starts.

PLANTING UP CONTAINERS.

Make sure the containers you are using have drainage holes! Then put in some stones or old, broken terracotta pots. If the pot is heavy and you don’t need ballast to stop it blowing away in the wind then use old polystyrene. This will help the drainage. Some slow release plant food will help the plants along. You can try making up a hanging basket with these spring plants. The pansies, herbs, heathers and ivy’s will all look good. When planting the basket up, start from the centre and work outwards. There is more chance of root damage if it is planted up starting from the outside and working inwards. Water retaining crystals would be beneficial too but they aren’t so vital in winter baskets. Remember, plants will still dry out in baskets, even on the wettest of days, so check them regularly.