Plants Suitable for Hanging Flower Pots

• The most popular, or at least the most common plants, found in hanging flower pots are impatiens, petunias, fuchsias, lobelias and verbenas. These plants are distinguished by their nonstop flowering, cascading habit and ease of care.
  
  Any annual or perennial that flowers all summer long or has interesting foliage, grows in a compact, mounding or trailing shape, and has a relatively small mature size can be used in a hanging pot.
  
  For trailing or cascading growth, nasturtiums, lobelias, petunias, verbenas, sweet potato vines, ice plants, scaevola and thunbergia are just a few of the plants available. Cascading plants come in either long trailers (vines) or short trailers. Plants with long trailers should be planted towards the center of the pot and make great specimen plants for single-variety pots. Plants with short trailers should be planted towards the edges of the pots and look best mixed with plants that have a mounding growth habit.
  
  Mounding plants include geraniums, pansies, petunias, snapdragons, salvias and coleus. Mounding plants are generally planted in the middle of mixed flower pots with cascading plants planted along the edges. Look for mounding plants to have upright, compact growth and self-cleaning (you don't have to deadhead) flowers.
  
  

Planting a Hanging Pot

• Use a general potting soil or, if you want to make your own potting mix, combine equal parts compost and garden soil. Group like plants together--for example, plant shade-loving plants in one pot, full sun plants in another. Try to keep plants that need a lot of water in separate pots from plants that need very little water.
  
  Fill your container to 1 inch of the rim with soil. This gives you room to water.
  
  Place plants in the container starting from the middle and working outwards. Don't worry about spacing requirements ,you want to over-plant slightly to give your hanging container a full look.
  
  You can mix flower colors and shapes with abandon; however try to keep foliage colors to a minimum. If you are using purple-leaved plants don't add a variegated white plant. If you are using coleus keep similar shades together. Too much variety in foliage tends to give containers an overblown busy appearance that detracts from the flowers.
  
  

Vegetables and Herbs

• When you are potting up your hanging pots don't forget vegetables and herbs. Tomatoes, particularly the grape and cherry varieties, do quite well in hanging pots. Combine tomatoes, basil or leaf lettuces for a hanging salad.
  
  Leaf lettuces, salad greens and spinach also like pots. Use edible trailing flowers like nasturtiums to give your pot a little kick.
  
  Herbs like parsley, basil, thyme, sage and rosemary take well to potted life. Look for trailing and variegated varieties for added interest.