How to create the perfect hanging basket

Follow our tips for a beautiful hanging display this summer

Buy the basics You'll need a coated-wire basket, a fibre basket liner, a circle of black plastic punctured with holes, multipurpose compost, fertiliser granules and water-retaining gel – all available from good garden centres. You'll also need a strong wall bracket that can take the weight of the basket and its watered contents.

Choose your flowers Choose a mix of trailing and upright plants – geraniums, begonias, lobelias, sweet peas and petunias work well – keep baskets in a greenhouse or sheltered spot until any danger of late frosts has passed.

Water and feed regularly With many roots in a small space, the plants will need help from Miracle-Gro All-purpose Plant Food, £4.49 for 1kg, Homebase. If you plan to go away, plant baskets with a moisture-absorbing compost that retains twice as much water as ordinary compost.

More Property