What cool plants, especially the Chrysothemis pulchella.

Has anyone noticed that it's hard to find the regular hanging baskets. The ones I like (dark green) are already already planted; I want to buy some empty ones. You used to be able to find them on the shelves of Wal Mart, Home Depot and Lowes. No longer -- they're either an ugly shade of green - or even black. Maybe someone doesn't want the general public making up their own hanging baskets. Another gardening friend asked me the same question a couple of days ago.

I have only seen black ones I have not seen green in any shade for years. I think the demand for ready made planters is higher than make your own planters. Our society is not big on DIY do it yourself.

It does take a bit of a knack to put an attractive pot together and people that do not have the talent or the desire to do it is the majority. We are the fast food, frozen dinner, let someone else do the background work society.

If you find the black and want green I would hit the Dollar General and pick up the green spray paint and paint the black ones. I see that pretty garden green color all the time at Dollar General for 2.00. Just an idea.

Some pics I took yesterday:

Wonderful hanging baskets Tiffany.

The basket season it drawing close to the end here. I only have 2 this year, but they are not as interesting as your varied planting are.

TY! I'm not sure I won't end up with a ton of so-similar looking pots if I keep doing that, but I have fun & get in a total peaceful, meditative zone "playing" with them, so at least that much is a very good thing. And I can save a ton of plants in so little space, to start the whole thing over again in the spring.

Love the elegance of your pots! I keep saying I'm going to get some of those wire/coir liner ones, pics like yours remind me how much I like them.

The down side of the wire/coir baskets is that they dry out so quickly. I may end up lining the inside of the coir with plastic next year.

Lynn I could never grow good hanging plants in coir baskets until I learned I had to line them years ago. When I was working I was out of town and not home to water the plants every day. Everything really was dead.

This year I finally had to put plastic on the outside of the coir because the birds were taking all the coir from the side. I let them take from the corners on top but they were pulling all the coir out and the soil started falling out.

I do not have hanging baskets anymore but I have the railing hanging basket.

Look at this bird eyeing where he is going attack the coir.

I love the little Goldfinches. So far I haven't had any trouble with birds harvesting the coir.

Lynn, next year try placing one of those cheep clear plastic saucers inside, then put your soil in the containers. I believe it works well.

You are kidding. They have taken mine apart. I went out one day and one basket did not have enough coir left to hold any soil. I do have a lot of robins though. I have sat and watched them pick and pick until they have a mouthful. Fly away and do it all over again. Sometime their mouth is so full they drop some as they fly away. I also have to fight the Robins over my red sedum. They love red sedum. I see it hanging in their nest all the time. I guess they are decorating

Would that be Nest Beautiful Cinta?

I will give that a try Julia. It sure has been a battle keeping those two baskets watered this summer.

Yes Lynn I always tell my daughter she is decorating her home with my sedum. Every year they build their nest under my garage over hang. I look up and hanging down it the red sedum. If I take the sedum put she goes back and get some more. I gave up and take it back in the Fall after they leave the nest.

Julia, that is what I am using on the outside of the coir. I get them from the dollar store.

I love that story Cinta.

That's funny about the sedum. I wonder if you put some red yarn out if she would go for that. Love to watch the birds.

Cuttings added to pots over the past couple weekends aren't stopped at all in their process of blooming:

Tradescantia sillamontana:


Plectranthus verticillatus:


Tripogandra:


Watch chain Crassula:

They seem to know the season is ending and trying their best to make sure there is seed to carry on future generations.

orchidgal said:Has anyone noticed that it's hard to find the regular hanging baskets. The ones I like (dark green) are already already planted; I want to buy some empty ones. You used to be able to find them on the shelves of Wal Mart, Home Depot and Lowes. No longer -- they're either an ugly shade of green - or even black. Maybe someone doesn't want the general public making up their own hanging baskets. Another gardening friend asked me the same question a couple of days ago.

Our local Home Depot has a "recycle/reuse" shelf in the garden center. There are often hanging baskets there, along with nursery pots of various sizes. They tell me "take them and use them" and don't even charge. There are the most there in the spring and in September-early October when people are doing fall plantings.

I sometimes use the cheap hanging baskets to line shallow plastic pots that don't have drainage holes or don't fit any 'saucer' I have. If I'm hanging those indoors, the pot without drain holes becomes the catch pan/saucer, and the inexpensive/ugly nursery basket is the "pot" with drainage.

For hangers, I make my own from twine. I'm pretty good with the lost art of macrame, combined with some braiding as well. I also sell these at local farmers' markets during the summer, and I'm about to start putting some on Etsy or Amazon's new handcrafted section.

For hanging planters I have indoors, I like pots without drainage holes, and use a nursery container within that with drainage, sometimes with marbles or pebbles holding it up out of the water that drains.

Hi CommonCents, and to ATP. Glad you found your way here.
I will definitely check out our Home Depot next time I'm there. That sounds like a wonderful way to save money.

Our local Lowe's does that too.