7 Tips for Watering Your Hanging Baskets This Summer
Watering your hanging baskets properly in summer is an absolute must, and the process is a little different than your regular garden routine. A few days of mistakes, and your plants could be toast. Gardening enthusiast Emily Estep will tell you all you need to know about watering hanging baskets for flourishing flowers and foliage.
Contents
Hanging baskets are a beautiful way to display many cascading plants, brightening porches and doorsteps with color. They’re a great way to showcase annuals without committing to in-ground beds, and there’s no weeding involved.
There is one major downside. These baskets dry out quickly. They’re exposed not just to the sun but also to the wind, which both remove moisture. Plus, the species inside grow larger and require more water while the volume of soil inside remains the same. Fortunately, some container designs and irrigation methods can easily solve this problem.
Watering your elevated containers in summer properly, frequently, and without fail is crucial, if you don’t want to see crispy, sad vines outside your front door. Check out our tips for watering your hanging baskets. Your flowers and greenery will thank you.
Hanging Basket
Dura Cotta Hanging Basket:
- Available in green, black, or terracotta
- 12″ pot size
- UV-resistant plastic resin
- No chipping, cracking, or discoloration
- Built-in water reservoir
Water in the Morning
Morning is the best time of day to water hanging baskets for two primary reasons:
- Watering early ensures that plants will be properly hydrated for the sunniest, hottest part of the day.
- It gives them more time to uptake moisture before the sun evaporates any extra.
Watering in the morning is an ideal practice for most species, not just those in raised pots. The sun is usually at its most intense between 12 and 2 p.m. when UV rays are in full force. As the day goes on, temperatures tend to remain high until the sun starts to set, especially during the longest days of the year.
By providing a good soak early, roots will have all the moisture they need to endure this challenging part of the day. Intense UV rays and high heat are rough on dry, thirsty plants. You wouldn’t want to hang out in the afternoon sun if you were dehydrated, right?
Additionally, intense sunlight will cause moisture on top of the soil to evaporate quickly. If you water around midday or early afternoon, some of the moisture will just vaporize before it can sink into the potting mixture and become available to roots.
Cloudy days are an exception to this phenomenon. You can get away with watering somewhat later in the day if you know conditions will be gloomy.
Water Thoroughly
When you water a hanging basket, be sure to do so thoroughly. You want all of the soil in the basket to be soaked. Because they are growing in containers above the ground, they have zero access to groundwater. The limited soil in their pot is all they have, so it’s critical that this soil holds as much moisture as possible.
You will know that the soil is holding as much moisture as it can when extra begins to flow out the drainage holes in the pot. If your elevated container doesn’t have drainage holes, you can add them with a drill. Otherwise, your flowers may be subject to root rot.
Sometimes, especially when the soil is initially quite dry, water will stream off the sides of the pot. This is not the same as excess leaving through the drainage holes and does not indicate that the potting mix has been saturated.
When soil is truly dry, it initially resists liquid like a desiccated kitchen sponge. This hydrophobic state is what causes water to roll off the top and down the sides of the basket. Give the soil a minute or two to absorb some moisture, and then try again.
Water Repeatedly, If Needed
Sometimes, one thorough morning application just isn’t enough. The dog days of summer are long, hot, and demanding on plants. They may need a second application of H2O. You may also just have a really thirsty plant.
Some species drink more than others, especially as they mature and grow in size as the seasons progress. These thirsty roots might suck up everything in their limited baskets and begin to wilt in the afternoon sun.
Keep your eye on your baskets during long summer days. Starting in July, plenty of species, including those in your raised beds and in-ground gardens, actually need repeat watering. Depending on where you live, this could even begin in June.
Also, consider whether unusual weather patterns are occurring. It may seem early in the summer, but if your region is experiencing a heat wave in May or June, then your hanging baskets are going to feel it.
If you’re in the middle of a heat wave, take a quick afternoon trip outside to check on your baskets again. As tempting as it may be to stay indoors in the afternoon, your plants will appreciate it.
Add Fertilizer
Most plants benefit from water-soluble fertilizer, including those in hanging baskets. Even if you’re growing annuals that you intend to compost in the fall, why not keep them as happy and healthy as possible all summer long?
The soil in elevated containers becomes nutrient-deficient far faster than soil in the garden or in raised beds. The constant watering of this soil leaches nutrients, with critical plant nourishment draining out the bottom each day.
To replenish, you can use a variety of fertilizers. Most will work as long as you don’t use too much. Products will have directions and amounts on the package. An all-purpose fertilizer is probably your most convenient option. Apply it once or twice a month.
How late into summer you fertilize depends on the length of your season. If you live somewhere where the first frost is projected for September, you can probably provide your last fertilizer application in August, if not earlier. If your zone won’t see frost until December, keep on fertilizing into fall.
You probably put some time, thought, and money into the varieties you chose. As the summer goes on, keep them well-nourished by making fertilizer part of your routine.
Don’t Water Wet Soil
While most of these tips are about how important it is not to underwater your suspended pots and let them get too dry, it’s also possible to go in the opposite direction and saturate too much. This can be a serious problem, leading to root rot.
Overwatering is a problem for some gardeners who have lost hanging baskets in the past to underwatering. Now, to overcompensate, they’re providing too much water. Even though these containers have drainage holes, it’s still possible for plants to get root rot.
Root rot occurs when roots are unable to access oxygen. Excess moisture can also be a breeding ground for rot-causing fungi and bacteria.
If you go outside in the morning and discover that the potting mix in the basket is still moist, leave it be. It’s possible that there was overnight rain. Possibly, conditions were simply milder than expected the day before, and the roots weren’t too thirsty.
When in doubt, use a moisture meter to see if the soil in the center of the basket is dry or not. If the meter says that the soil is already moist or wet, leave the container alone for the day.
If skipping a watering still makes you nervous, just check on your flowers again in the early afternoon to see if they’re dry or not.
Don’t Water the Flowers
Try to get your spout or hose near the base of the plant, so you’re watering the soil and not the leaves or flowers. There are multiple reasons why this process is important.
One, roots absorb moisture through the soil, so this is the portion of the hanging basket that you want to soak. Most species can’t absorb moisture through their leaves or can only absorb very little. If you get the leaves and flowers wet instead, you’re just wasting water, and the plants will still be thirsty.
Second, many plant diseases are spread through humidity and moisture on the leaves. Getting water all throughout a tightly packed basket is a risky move, especially if you live in a humid climate. Both fungal and bacterial diseases, such as powdery mildew and bacterial blight, can be a problem.
You may be thinking that it’s impossible not to get a thick, dense basket of million bells or petunias wet. If you can’t avoid getting the plant wet, try to douse the same spot every day so only one portion of the arrangement is affected. You can also try bottom watering.
Don’t Forget When You Go on Vacation
Summer is usually the best time of year for vacation because the weather is gorgeous and kids are out of school. This may seem obvious, but don’t forget that your hanging baskets still need water when you leave town.
All of your outdoor gardens and pots still need to be cared for when you’re gone, but your elevated pots are in the most danger. Your in-ground garden will probably survive a short weekend, especially if there are cloudy skies or summer thunderstorms.
Your hanging baskets, however, can’t access any moisture in the ground. These arrangements are often covered by awnings and porch roofs, too, so they might not even get touched by rain. They won’t have access to any puddles in the grass either.
Hopefully, you’ve secured help from a friend or neighbor who plans to manage the garden while you’re gone, especially if you’ll be MIA for a week or more. Consider moving your hanging baskets so that all of your outdoor plants are in the same spot, making the watering chores easier for this helpful individual.
Personally, my garden is in my backyard, while my annuals are in front of the house. It’s easy for me to forget about pots and baskets that are out of sight, so I couldn’t blame someone else for forgetting, too.
