Cottage Style Party & Hanging Baskets

Yep, that's right, another gardening post!

Do you ever buy those pre-made hanging baskets filled with lush annual flowers?

Do they look bad after a month or so?

All the fertilizer in the world is not going to revive those baskets!

Do I sound like an infomercial yet?

lol!

You can fix that problem before it becomes a problem!

Here's 3 baskets I bought at the flea market for $10 each.

Each basket has a mix of verbena, white licorice and petunias.

I liked the mix and the maturity of the plants and knew with a little bit of help they would flower all summer long.

I removed the pot and flipped over the plant. As I suspected the roots were already having a party in the bottom of the pot.

I grabbed a large knife and hacked off the bottom of the roots.

Do not be afraid! They will love you for this!

Prepare the bottom of the pot with a nice lightweight soil mix and some compost mixed in.

I buy 40# bags of organic compost for $1.58 and a 2.5 cu/ft bag of Miracle-Gro potting mix for $13.97 at my Home Depot.

Mixing the 2 together will make an expensive potting mix go a little further and feed your plants too.

Kind of hard to photo this and do it at the same time…but I put the plant in the pot and spooned in potting soil to fill in the gaps between the plant and the sides of the new hanging basket.

Then I sprinkle in a light dose of fertilizer, hang it then water thoroughly.

I repeat this process until all my baskets are done.

To keep the blooms coming all summer, give your baskets a light dose of fertilizer every other week and water in.

This makes a huge difference in your hanging baskets all summer long!

Hello Friends!

Welcome to this weeks

Cottage Style Party!

#96

I'm running behind tonight because I needed to plant about 80 lily bulbs before dark and before the storms tomorrow.

I bought lots of lilies and a few other plants at the nursery where I work. 

Ok, I don't actually work AT the nursery but I do work for a nursery that is an hour and a half away from my home.

I made the trip on Saturday in the cold rain. Let's just say it put a damper on the outside plants and made the bagged lilies inside that much more desirable.

At 50c a bag of bulbs I brought home a ton of them!

Woot!

What have you done this past week?

Let's check, ok…

How sweet are these violas in this rustic basket?

Tracie over at Fishtail Cottage did a mantle update with these lovely flowers as the centerpiece.

Stop by her blog to see what else is featured on her beautiful mantle! 

I just love these tea cups with pink floral trees. This pattern is called Apple Blossom…isn't it pretty?

I could see myself drinking tea out of one of these in my garden.

Drop by Linda's blog Beautiful Ideas to see more of these tea cups and to read about the Pink Tree Project!

I love this crisp yellow and white polka dots and flowers table setting! It's perfect for an outdoor lunch.

Which is exactly what Janet had in mind! Visit her blog Rosemary & Thyme to see more her lovely outdoor lunch and don't miss the sunny yellow tulips!

If you were featured, don't

forget your button!

 Deb

Thanks for stopping by!

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