Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1872-03-28
Hanging Baskets.


No floral ornament is more graceful
or charming than a hanging basket,
well-hlled and in thrifty condition.
There is scope for wide range of taste
and style in both the material of the
basket itself, as we'll as the plants with
which it is filled. If one lives within
reach Of good greenhouse, and can
afford the moderate expense involved,
the least troublesome method of OBJ
tanning hanging basket is to order one
ready filed and growing. They gener-
ally sell, complete, from a dollar and
half to six or eight dollars, according to
the materials and contents. All the
care that the purchaser need exercise is
to see that the plants contained in the
basket are such as are adapted to the
location it is destined to occupy, in re-
spect to temperature, sunshine, etc. 1t
is also necessary that all the plants
| contained in the same basket should
have similar conditions of growth. If a
Coleus, Begonia, or Tradescantia is
planted in the same basket with a
pansy or Chinese primrose, it would
prove failure, for the first three re-
quire degree of heat which would be
speedily fatal to the latter. A judicious
florist would, however, avoid such an
error.
The material of the ready-nlade bas-
kets is generally wire, terra-cotta or
rustic work. The wire baskets, lined
with thick, soft moss, are much the
prettiest, but require more care in
keeping well watered, and there is con
slant evaporation from the entire sur
face.
But no one need be deprived of hang
ing baskets by reason of inability to OBJ
tain them ready filled from the florist
With no expenditure except that Of a
little labor, directed by taste and skill,
articles have been produced which sur
pass in elegance of appearance the
choicest pi oductions of the green. house.
Half a cocoanut shell, a superannuated
wire dish cover, china bowl swung up
in a netting of crocheted zephyr, a
wooden bowl covered with rustic
branches, any shallow affair which will
hold from pint to half peck of soil
and can be conveniently suspended,
will answer the purpose. The steel
springs of discarded hoop skirt fur
nish the material with which variety
of baskets may be fabricated If dish
of any kind is used, always see that
ample provision is made for drainage,
by means of hole or holes in the
bottom.
For contents, the forests, fields and
roadsides furnish an inexhaustible va,
riety. Plants of dwarf, compact habit
are necessary for filling up the center,
and those of trailing habit to hang
over the sides. For the latter purpose,
Moneywort (Lysimachia nummuiaria)
Nasturtium (Tropeolum majus), Lobe
liza erinus, are all neat and pretty
There is little creeping plant with a
square stem, rounded kidney-shaped
leaves, and blue flowers, called Gill
(Nepeta Glechoma), which is regarded
as a weed in the country, but which
hourishes nicely in hanging baskets
and is sometimes sold by city florists fol
that purpose.
Some of the prettiest baskets we evel
saw were homemade, and filled with
forest plants: Trailing Arbutus (Epigea
repens), Wintergreen (Gaultheria pro
cumbens), Partridge berry (Mitchella
repens), the barren strawberry (Wald
steinia fragaroides), and directly in the
center a strong rhizome or "root" Of
fern. The latter continues, during the
entire season, to uncoil its rich, feathery
fronds, in striking yet harmonious con
trast with the bright green foliage, deli
cate bloom ano brilliant berries of it,
trailing neighbors. This collection hac
he additional advantage of being able
% flourish in a cool, sunless, north
room.
Care should be taken to see thai
hanging baskets are not permitted tc
suffer for want of sufficient watering
Wire baskets, lined with moss, should
in addition to the usual sprinkling, be
dipped in water every few days.