Herbs in hanging baskets

Brighten up a dull wall with a glorious, aromatic basket of herbs, just asking to be picked
Time to plant: late spring

Take advantage of a sunny house wall and plant up a used basket with a selection of your favourite cooking herbs. Fast-growing leafy herbs make a pretty and practical hanging basket, and as long as they’re within reach, you will even brave a spot of rain if you know you can quickly pick a handful. Any type of hanging basket will do: rustic woven ones are particularly fetching, and large wire ones with coir liners, like this one here, are readily available at garden centres and nurseries. Choose herbs that you use all the time: moss curled parsley, marjoram, sage and thyme are always good for cooking, and chives, chervil and coriander are great for spicing up salad leaves. Water the basket regularly once it’s planted, especially if it’s on a sunny wall. Pick the leaves regularly, otherwise, the basket will become overcrowded.

TIP Pop in a couple of nasturtiums for a splash of edible colour.

BBC gardeners book
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