I have wanted to add flower baskets mounted on posts to my garden
for a long time. Getting the garden ready for the McKinney Garden & Home Tour
encouraged me to get this project done. This project was super easy!!!
I bought the steel stakes from Lowes...around $20 each...I purchased three stakes.
Always decorate in odd numbers...like one, three, five, seven...so I chose three.
I used a sledge hammer to pound the stakes into the ground. I wish I had hammered
them into the ground deeper. I will eventually paint the stakes and posts white.
Here is the placement of the three stakes in the Algerian Ivy bed. I should have
taken off the labels before I hammered in the stakes.
I purchased one 8' pre-treated 4" x 4" post from Home Depot and they
cut the post into 4 - 2' lengths. Home Depot will make cuts for FREE
where Lowes will charge you a cutting fee.
Put the posts into the top area of the stakes and tighten the bolts to
secure the posts.
Attach the wire basket to the post using U shape nails. This step is very important
so the basket once loaded with heavy dirt and flowers will not fall off the post.
Use a large basket so it really makes a statement in your garden.
Purchase Sphagnum Moss...I really like this brand because this is meant
for flower baskets. Don't buy the moss that is used to amend soil!!! this doesn't
work in baskets. Sphagnum moss is expensive but well worth the cost. I purchase
the large bags which cost around $75 per bag. I plant around 20 -25 baskets
a year so I purchase two bags per year. At the end of the season the birds will pull
the sphagnum out of the baskets to make their nests so I have to replace a lot
of moss each year.
Put some moss in a 5 gallon bucket and fill with water. Allow the moss
to soak for a while to adsorb the water. Take a hand full of moss
and line the bottom of the wire basket with the moss. Make
the moss about 2 - 3" thick. Start adding moss up the sides of the basket.
If you want to add plants to the sides of the basket add them now.
Continue adding moss to the sides of the basket around the added plants completely
lining the sides of the basket with moss. This will take a lot of moss. I usually get 5 - 6 baskets out
of one large bag of moss.
When the basket is fully lined with moss it is time to add dirt. I use a good quality
planting soil that I amend with time release fertilizer.
By the time you have added the moss and garden soil your basket is heavy so
it is important to use a sturdy wire basket.
My garden baskets are in the shade so I planted with caladiums, coleus, creeping jenny,
grasses, begonias, petunias and shade loving plants.
Things I learned while doing this project are:
hammer the stakes all the way into the ground so they don't show
take the labels off the stakes before hammering
paint the posts before mounting
use sturdy wire baskets...one of my baskets was not sturdy and it fell off the post!!!
determine finished project height before having posts cut
I like to get projects done quickly. Take your time and do the above steps
so your project will look beautiful and be successful.
So glad you joined me here and
if you have any questions...just ask...I am here to help you with your
gardening projects if I can!!!
If you are in the McKinney, TX. area I would love to meet you at my Lady Butterbug Shoppe!!!
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