How to Plant Beautiful Flower Hanging Baskets ( & 20+ Best Hanging basket plants )

Oh, those hanging baskets overflowing with flowers and foliage of all colors and textures, they fill us with such wonder and awe.  Everyone can re-create these, by choosing the right hanging basket plants for sun or shade locations, and mixing them in an artistic way!

As a garden designer, I often meet great gardeners and growers, who share with me their best secrets to growing beautiful hanging baskets, which I can’t wait to share with YOU today! 🙂

1 . Best hanging basket plants and flowers to use in the sun, or in the shade.

2 . Easy care tips such as : how to line hanging baskets, best soil for hanging baskets, how often to water them.

3 . How to make hanging baskets look full with complete plant lists for each beautiful hanging basket featured here!

The first IMPORTANT step is to choose the right hanging basket plants for the right locations.

Before you plant a hanging basket, observe carefully if the location is sunny or shady. Keep in mind that the position of the sun changes seasonally. For example, the north side of a building can be in shade during winter and in hot sun during summer. Also “sunny” in Seattle is very different from “sunny” in Phoenix!

Best plants and flowers for hanging baskets in full sun or half day sun.

Plant list 1 ( first image above) : Purple and red Petunias, Yellow Coreopsis ( or other trailing yellow daisies ), Variegated Plectranthus.

Plant list 2 ( second image above) : Yellow and orange Nasturtium, Coreopsis ( or other trailing yellow daisies ), Calibrachoa ‘Million Bells Trailing Magenta’. ( Source: 1 | 2 )

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Plant list 3 ( image above) : Deep purple Petunia, pink Variegated Geranium, Sweet Potato Vine. ( Source: 3 )

As you can see, some of the best hanging basket plants and flowers are trailing flowers and vines like Petunias and Million Bells ( Calibrachoa, the Petunia Look-Alike ). They are easy to care for , and bloom profusely. They also come in such a great varieties of colors! Just make sure you select the trailing varieties, not the mounding varieties!

How to line hanging baskets, best soil for hanging baskets, how often to water them.

A good size hanging flower basket is usually 14″ to 16″ wide, and they can come with Coco coir liners , which are great materials to line a hanging basket. Choose good quality potting soil that contains peat moss and perlite. Add  slow-release, complete fertilizer such as this to the mix.

Hanging flower baskets require more regular watering than most container plantings. Don’t let the soil mix dry out. Ideally, baskets in the sun need to be watered every day, baskets in the shade need to be watered once every 2 days.

Plant list 4 : Petunias and Calibrachoa in red and white, red Geranium, Blue Lobelia erinus, Variegated Plectranthus.

Plant list 5 : Petunias in blue and white, Lobelia erinus . ( Source: 4 | 5 )

Lobelia is a sun-loving non-stop bloomer with masses of tiny blue, pink, white, purple, or bi-colored flowers from spring till fall. Choose trailing Lobelia varieties such as Lobelia erinus for hanging baskets.

Plant list 6 : Light pink Petunia, Purple Verbena, Nemesia ‘Safari White’,

Plant list 7 : Pink Geranium, Petunias in light purple, Lobelia erinus . ( Source: 6 | 7 – from jpgardening.wordpress.com site no longer available.)

You may also like: 24 colorful container garden plantings with plant list for each! 

24 colorful container garden plantings with plant list for each! 

Back to our hanging flower baskets: what if you want to plant a colorful hanging basket in the shade?

There are actually some very beautiful and showy shade-loving plants to choose from. Check out the following four examples!

Best hanging basket plants and flowers to use for shade.

Plant list 8 ( great for shade ) : Begonia × tuberhybrida Tuberous Begonias in orange and yellow, Yellow Coreopsis ( or other trailing yellow daisies ), Lysimachia ‘Goldilocks’ / Creeping Jenny.

Plant list 9 ( great for shade ): Caladium ‘Celebration’ and Caladium ‘Rose Glow’, Asarina scandens ‘Snow White’ , Lysimachia ‘Goldilocks’ / Creeping Jenny ( Source: 8 | 9 )

Plant list 10 ( great for shade ) : Begonia × tuberhybrida / Tuberous Begonias in orange and yellow, Tradescantia zebrina / ‎Wandering jew plant, Sweet Potato Vine, Lobelia erinus, Variegated Plectranthus .

Plant list 11 ( great for shade ) : Dragon Wing Begonia, Asparagus Fern ( Source: 10 | 11 )

You may also love: 16 colorful planters for shade, with plant list for each!

16 colorful planters for shade, with plant list for each!

Plant list 12 -15: great colorful mixes of hanging plants!

Plant list 12 : Mixed color Violas, great for cool climate like early spring.

Plant list 13 : Purple and pink Petunias, Coreopsis ( or other trailing yellow daisies ), Lobelia erinus, Red Verbena. ( Source: 12 | 13 )

A hanging basket can also become an attractive wall basket ! These wall brackets for hanging plants can offer a great  way to dress up an empty wall!

Plant list 14 ( great for shade ) : Begonia × tuberhybrida / Tuberous Begonias in orange and yellow, Fuschia, Lysimachia ‘Goldilocks’ / Creeping Jenny.

Plant list 15 : Red and pink Petunias, Coreopsis ( or other trailing yellow daisies ), blue Lobelia erinus. ( Source )

If you have time, 🙂 please come tour our indoor garden with 18 favorite easy indoor plants!

Our indoor garden with 18 favorite easy indoor plants!

Happy planting!