Much like you may have been potting up bulbs and plug plants to grow on indoors before planting them out, you can do the same with hanging baskets. Much of a gardener’s work is planning and preparing for the next stage of the season, and this is a little job you can do with a couple of hours spare. It’s a lovely job, and will bring on the excitement of when you can hang them up next month!
In a wire basket, line with a fibrous mat, a ready moulded cardboard liner, or go naturalistic with some lawn moss. Put the basket into a pot to make it steady enough to plant in, and then cut some little holes in the sides for trailers. Unless your display is more permanent than about a year, use a really good multi-purpose compost that may have feed already in – your plants have a long season ahead of them producing flowers so they’ll need lots of nutrition. A John Innes no.2 will be better for longer term plants. You can also place controlled release (slow release) fertiliser to the planting mix too. Water retaining granules will also take away some of the chore of watering through the summer. Choose an array of colours and heights and habits of bedding, and tuck them in carefully, ensuring you’re not squashing lots in without enough room for their roots to grow.
Fill around with compost and firm in, watering well. Place your baskets in prominent positions in the sun next month.