The Secrets of Organic Container Growing

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NATURAL HANGERS

A particularly eye-catching variation of the hanging basket theme is the natural hanger. To make one, simply use a piece of driftwood, twisted tree branch, or half rotted stump section for your hanger instead of a basket. Look for a hollowed-out wood piece with some short limbs or branches for support handles. If you use a rotted stump, knock off all the pithy, soft material and let the whole thing dry thoroughly. If you've got a piece of ocean driftwood, soak it in water for a couple of days to wash out the salt. And if any piece has a deep, water-holding pocket in it, line that potential rot spot with a piece of plastic garbage bag to protect it.

To create a basket, attach a length of one-inch chicken wire across the front of the wood with nails or staples. Leave a little extra wire on top. Now, starting at the bottom, line the chicken wire with soaked sphagnum. Then add soil and side plants as you did before—making sure the soil is packed in well so it'll hold the moss in place. Plant the top, cover the soil mix there with moss, and fold over the extra chicken wire to hold that moss in place. If there are any blank areas in—your planting, you can make an opening and insert a small plant or cutting of, perhaps, sedum or wandering Jew.

CARE AND MAINTENANCE

Of course, taking care of those baskets, herbs, and other indoor plants is the real test of the indoor gardener. Here are a few helpful hints.

Light:

Providing the amount of light appropriate to your plants is essential—too much is just as harmful as too little. So when you're grouping greenery in a basket, try to combine types that have the same lighting needs. Most tropicals need partial shade, which is best supplied by the filtered, direct sunlight you get beneath a slatted porch roof, below a shade cloth, or—during warm weather—under a light shade tree. Most vegetables, flowers, and herbs want full sun—or only about 10 to 15% shade. If the light is uneven, rotate your plants or baskets every week or so.

Water: There's no set schedule for watering plants . . . they transpire much more water on a sunny day than on a cloudy one. Temperature, wind, and humidity also affect a plant's needs. The only way to know when to water is to stick your finger down into the soil—it should be moist, but not wet, to the touch. You may be surprised by what you discover. Mature plants, for instance, can have quite a thirst. I had a 16-inch Swedish-ivy basket that took up to two gallons a day in August! Still, be careful: Overwatering is the single biggest killer of container plants, primarily because it's so hard to detect. You can spot an underwatered plant; its leaves start to lose color and droop. An overwatered specimen, though, may look just fine until it suddenly keels over dead from root rot.

Water in late morning or late afternoon (but early enough so the water can evaporate from the leaves before evening). If possible, water from the bottom—set your pots in saucers and fill those saucers with water. The capillary action of the mix will draw up the liquid and nutrients. This technique will reduce soil compaction and help prevent the mix from drawing away from the wall of the pot. You can even take a hanging basket down once in a while and set it in a tub of water for a few minutes.

In general, glossy, leathery leaves enjoy being sprayed often, but water only the soil of fuzzy-leaved plants. Never use cold tap water in the winter. And if you must use city water, let it sit for at least a day first, so the chlorine can evaporate.

Fertilizing: I've already given some fertilizing advice. In addition to that, consider working fresh compost, worm castings, or other general organic amendments into the surface soil of any container that you've kept for more than a few months. On the other hand, cut back liquid feedings during the slow-growth winter months . . . and never give liquid tea to a severely dried-out basket, or you may overdose it. Also, don't feed liquid fertilizers to any plant until about three weeks after transplanting (unless you want to administer a weak solution of chamomile tea or vitamin B, right after transplanting to help it heal in).

General Care: The plant combinations in a hanging basket will change over time. Usually, you end up with two or three hardy perennials and periodically add annuals, such as flowers. Just keep cutting off lanky growth and unattractive or spent blooms . . . remove any leaves that have blemishes . . . and replace any plants that are dying.

If your plants are healthy, they'll continue to grow. And if your ornamentals start making babies, you can take that as a sign that you're doing something right ... namely, mastering the art of organic container growing!

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