ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, April 28, 1996 TAG: 9604300063
SECTION: HOMES PAGE: D-1 EDITION: METRO
Want to make a hanging basket that looks like a million bucks but costs less than $40? It's easy, says Southern Living magazine.
One of Southern Living Garden Specialist Jim Bennett's favorite projects, the easy-to-assemble hanging basket combines various vines and flowering plants in a wire hanging basket. Just select the right combination of plants, remove their plastic pots and get creative.
"Try a little experimentation with combinations of plants you like best, and you probably will want to make your own hanging baskets from now on," Bennett said. "It's so simple that anyone can do it. A few small plants and a little creativity is all it takes, but the rewards are spectacular."
One $40 formula calls for English ivy, asparagus fern, blue and yellow pansies, spider plant, creeping fig, kalanchoe, perennial primrose, parsley and dusty miller. Other materials include potting soil, florist wire, sheet moss and a wire hanging basket.
To create this basket that brims with color and texture, start by spraying the wire hanging basket with black paint to give it a wrought-iron look. Then just follow these steps:
Line the basket. Place sheet moss across the bottom and halfway up the sides. Add an inch or two of moistened, premium potting soil to raise the bottom of the basket.
Arrange the lower level of plants: English ivy, blue pansies and asparagus fern. Place the plants in the basket, turn them on their sides and pull the vine or flowers through the wire basket sides. The roots should point toward the center of the basket while the foliage drapes outside it.
Complete lining. Add more sheet moss to finish covering the basket's interior wire frame.
Place two 4-inch flowering plants, such as primrose, kalanchoe, dianthus or violet, in the top of the basket. Stand these flowers in the back of the basket, varying the height of the plants. Anchor them with potting soil, leaving room in front to add companion plants.
Create texture with companion plants. Fill in the front of the basket with spider plant, parsley, dusty miller and creeping fig. Place contrasting colors next to each other, leaving a space in front for one small yellow pansy or other seasonal flower that will add an extra burst of color against the green plants.
Secure arrangement. Fill any holes between the plants with potting soil and cover any bare spots with extra sheet moss. Use U-shaped florist wire to tack part of the long stems of the spider plant and ivy to the basket's exterior so that they appear to cling to it.
Display the finished product. Hang the basket at eye level for best viewing. Water the basket daily and fertilize it weekly. Place the basket where it gets lots of bright light but is protected from direct sun.
"Because this basket is made with natural sheet moss, it cannot be overwatered," Bennett said. "The water simply drains out through the moss' exterior. I look at these baskets as hanging gardens for flowers and herbs as well as vegetables. They're beautiful, and your neighbor will admire your handiwork."
Bennett will demonstrate more garden ideas at the upcoming Southern Living/Lowe's Lawn & Garden Seminar in Christiansburg on Saturday. The seminar will be staged at Lowe's warehouse at 350 Peppers Mill Run Drive. Admission is free.
Among his topics will be: Sensational Spring Lawns, 10 a.m.; Make Your Backyard Beautiful, noon; Creating Color with Annuals and Perennials, 2 p.m.; and Specialty and Container Gardening, 4 p.m.
LENGTH: Medium: 78 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: 1. Line the lower half of a wire hanging basket withby CNBsheet moss (top). 2. Place English ivy, blue pansies and asparagus
fern in the basket (above); turn the plants on their sides and pull
them between the wires. 3. Southern Living Garden Specialist Jim
Bennett presents the finished product (right). color.