http://www.thegardener.co.za I 35I
f we dissect the contents of the magnificent
spring hanging baskets photographed by our
editor, Tanya, in London a while ago, we will find a
limited selection of champion plants used repeatedly
to great success. All of them are freely available in
our country, and some of the pretty hybrids used,
like pelargoniums and bacopas, actually have South
African origins.
Since it is already September and early spring has
arrived, why not try your hand at planting some hanging
baskets of your own? You needn’t have started your
baskets ages ago for this spring look – it is quite possible
to get the look in a very short time.
You don’t have to go as far
as pub crawling in England to
enjoy the floral beauty of a well-
planted hanging basket...
THE MAGIC TIPS
- Buy modern hybrids of old favourites that have a
vigorous and cascading habit to tumble over and
cover the sides of a basket. - Find a really stunning item to create a little bit of
height in the centre of the basket, like a bright
pelargonium. - Invest in ‘instant colour pots’ (choose something that
our fantastic nurserymen have grown into a state of
semi-maturity for you, and that is available now as
colourful spring stock). - Relax and enjoy the planting.
- Give your hanging basket the best possible start, and
give it the care it needs afterwards to help the plants
to grow lushly and stay in top condition for as long as
possible.
6 spring classics for baskets
Pelargoniums
Having kept our ears on the ground, we know
that there are new and early flowering ranges of
pelargoniums like ‘Marcada’ and ‘Tacari’ for instance.
These interspecific pelargoniums are very floriferous,
self-cleaning, have a high resistance to weather
conditions, and need less water than other peltatums.
They have compact growth habits so keep a neat
shape, and carry their large and showy flowers above
the plant’s canopy. The semi-trailing ‘Marcada’ range
flowers are either red, pink or magenta, while the
showy flowers of ‘Tacari’ are available in a large range
of colours including two-tone shades.
Petunias
Every year sees so many new petunia ranges that it
makes our heads spin! For hanging basket purposes,
ask your nurserymen for those with a cascading
Petunia ‘Queen of Hearts’To care for your baskets, water
regularly, feed weekly and remove
spent flowers to encourage more.Geranium‘Marcada Dark Red’