17 plants for the hanging basket

Hanging baskets are flower vessels of a different kind. With their contents, they enhance dreary house walls and decorate small balconies without taking away anything of the limited space. When properly planted, they appear to consist only of flowers, while the pot disappears invisibly underneath. Would you like a large sea of ​​flowers in your own favorite color, or would you prefer a motley mix?

Plants for sunlit hanging baskets

It is the sun that draws out the colorful flowers of the plants. Sunny locations are perfect for flowering hanging plants. If you combine several plants with each other, pay attention to the same preferences, so that later all thrive optimally. Below is a selection of varieties as inspiration for the next planting.
geranium(Pelargonium)
No, the geranium is not a real Bavarian! Even if nobody in this country wants to believe it, this plant originally comes from South Africa. She shows most convincingly that she likes it with us too with her abundance of flowers.

• undemanding and resilient
• does not require a green thumb
• incredibly large variety
• also two-tone variants

Hussar button(Sanvitalia procumbens)
With its numerous small flowers, the hussar button transforms the hanging traffic light into a bright yellow ball. This pleasant sight remains until autumn. If the flowering friendliness declines in between, a pruning is sufficient so that new flowers will soon sprout.

• is one of the easiest to care for ampel plants
• tolerates wind and rain
• Three plants per hanging basket are sufficient

lobelia(Lobelia)
Due to the toxins it contains, the lobelia is a plant that should only thrive away from young children. If you don't have to worry about that, you can look forward to a sea of ​​flowers.

• also known as loyal to men
• countless small, blue flowers
• prefer hanging varieties for traffic lights
• Cut back after the first flowering
• a re-flowering follows as a reward

petunia (Petunia)
Her nickname could be the "Tireless" because the petunia never pauses in bloom. Countless colorful balconies testify to their endurance. But the petunia also turns a hanging basket into a huge flower ball.

• cheap and available everywhere
• new varieties are constantly coming onto the market
• filled, patterned and colorful
• can also cope with blazing sun
• requires increased maintenance

Tip: As beautiful as petunias are, they are unfortunately also prone to disease and pests. Make sure you have good vitality when you buy it.
Snowflake flower(Chaenostoma cordatum)
The snowflake flower owes its name to the color white in which it colors its small flowers. Different colored varieties are more of a rarity. Although the color white harmonizes well with other plants, a fully bloomed snowflake flower can shine on its own in a hanging basket.

• is not sensitive to weather
• particularly easy to care for
• we more popular
• the market regularly offers new varieties
• for example with larger flowers

Magic bells(Calibrachoa)
It is also known as mini petunia because of its appearance, but its bell flowers are smaller. This annual plant is ideal as a border planting in a traffic light, as the tendrils can hang down up to 50 cm long.

• has a wide range of colors
• grows nice and compact
• some breeds tolerate rain and wind
• can be combined decoratively with other plants

Blue Mauritius(Convolvulus sabatius)
Nobody has to fear these winds. On the contrary, its rapid growth is welcome in a hanging basket. Its long tendrils are covered with simple sky-blue flowers.

• needs a lot of nutrients and water
• is happy about the addition of lime
• Clean up what has faded and dried out
• Winter in a cool and bright place until the next season

Pear melon(Solanum muricatum)
It is a plant that is rarely found in pots in this country. The plant, which comes from South America, is also called Pepino. The flower color varies between white and deep blue depending on the temperature. The most striking thing about Pepino are the fruits, which are a mixture of melon and pear.

• Place protected from rain and sunny
• provide a good supply of water
• in this country only one year
• also perennial in the greenhouse

Plants for a partially shaded location

If the blazing sun burns too much on the leaves of some plants, it is time to flee to the penumbra. There is still enough light there so that no flower has to suffer.
Blue fan flower(Scaevola aemula)
The blue fan flower can withstand the sun, but also thrives wonderfully in partial shade. It is perennial and also very robust. It quickly fills any vessel without requiring a lot of maintenance.

• the root ball can withstand short-term drought
• throws off dried flowers by itself
• constantly sprouts new buds

Hanging snapdragon(Antirrhinum)
Hanging snapdragon is very easy to grow from seeds, grows quickly and blooms until the first frost. The annual cultivated plant can even survive in a mild winter and give us a second year of flowering.

• blooms in different colors
• Shorten the shoots for a bushy look
• Remove what has faded

Tip: This plant consumes little nutrients and would even thrive without fertilizer, even if it blooms more modestly. If you are fertilizing her, know that she does not like calcareous fertilizers.
Split flower(Schizanthus)
It is popularly known as the farmer's orchid, but despite the similarity of flowers, it is not related to orchids. The plant, which comes from South America, can withstand extreme heat and cold.

• Flowers last a very long time
• radiant colors
• annual, but can be propagated well from seeds
• do not plant too densely, must be able to dry off after rain
• possibly. Hang up protected from rain

Star flower(Ipheion)
As the name suggests, the star flower enchants with its star-shaped flowers. They are extremely small, but their number is innumerable.

• from April put the onions
• Fertilize regularly until July
• Hibernate tubers in the cellar

Plants for hanging hanging baskets in the shade

Everyone knows those places where the sun just can't get there. But you don't have to go unused or do without a flower arrangement. There are actually some varieties that have the potential to turn a hanging basket into a great sight even in such a place.
Begonias(Begonia)
Hanging varieties are ideal for a hanging basket that is only given a shady location. With a regular supply of nutrients, they diligently develop their flowers in a wide variety of colors.

• simple and double flowers
• pinch young shoots for bushy growth
• Tubers can be overwintered

ivy(Hedera helix)
As a solitary plant, the fast-growing ivy can fill the hanging basket with its innumerable green leaves. In combination with a flowering plant, however, it is much more attractive.

• evergreen plant
• forms long tendrils
• also available with a beautiful pattern
• is unfortunately poisonous
• hang away from small children and pets

Busy Lizzie(Impatiens walleriana)
If you plant Busy Lieschen in a hanging basket at the beginning of the open-air season, you will have provisions for many months. It already gets to work in the spring and accompanies us with its numerous blossoms into autumn.

• does not like extreme heat and drought
• in summer it has to be watered constantly
• fertilize every two weeks
• Promote the formation of buds, therefore remove what has faded
• buy young plants every year, overwintering is not worthwhile

fuchsia(Fuchsia)
Hanging varieties are ideal for a hanging basket when only a shady spot is available. With a fuchsia, the traffic light can bloom in your favorite color, because this type of flower offers an incredible amount of choice.

• is not stingy with its flowers
• flowers from April to October
• does not like drought, watering a lot
• fertilize weekly
• or supply with slow release fertilizer
• For stronger growth it is imperative to de-tip

Tip: Fuchsias can survive the winter unscathed in a cool and bright room and hang in their place again from May.
incense(Boswellia)
This plant smells slightly of incense and is said to drive away mosquitos. Its green and white patterned leaves are so decorative that the plant alone can turn the hanging basket into an eye-catcher.

• Leaves are ornamental
• Flowers are rather inconspicuous
• Plant can be overwintered

Plant closed hanging baskets correctly

Closed pots for hanging baskets are made from different materials. The most common are plastic, ceramics, clay, but also metal. A traffic light can be planted with a single type of flower, but large pots also offer enough space for several types of plants. The combination must always be coordinated so that your needs can be reconciled.

• Planting usually takes place from mid-May
• Light conditions at the location are decisive for the choice of variety
• are planted from the center
• plants growing upwards come in the middle
• climbing plants are in good hands on the edge
• a drainage layer prevents waterlogging

Plant open hanging baskets

Open hanging baskets are mostly made of rattan or macrame. The woven baskets are in their original state permeable and so not quite suitable for planting. Therefore, when planting an open traffic light, proceed as follows:

1. Line the hanging basket with some fir branches or sackcloth. This prevents earth from trickling out.

2. So that the irrigation water does not immediately flow out of the traffic light, you should line the floor with a waterproof film.

3. Poke a few holes in the film so that waterlogging cannot build up.

4. Start planting from the side by inserting the roots of hanging plant varieties through gaps in the traffic light.

5. Then fill the traffic light with substrate so that all roots are covered with it.

6. Now the vessel is planted from above. The higher-growing species are placed in the middle, followed by the slightly climbing varieties at the edge.

7. Fill in the gaps with substrate and press it down lightly.

8. Water the newly planted plants thoroughly and hang the traffic light in the designated place.