To be honest, we tend to get stuck in ruts here at the nursery, relying upon some tried-and-true favorite plants when creating our hanging gardens. We love them for our fall/winter baskets because they do so well in our Pacific NW weather, but let's face it, there are many more options available to us that are just as gorgeous and durable.

When designing this basket, we consciously chose some plants or varieties that don't often hit our radar, and we have to say we're rather pleased with the results. Yes, we added pansies for fall/winter color, but the erica ('Con Underwood') will pop with magenta flowers in the spring/summer, and the 'Tasmanian Tiger' euphorbia will send up those surreal flower bracts as well. That silvery ground cover, Dymondia margaretes, will stay low and creep over the edges of the basket, echoing the bright tones of the euphorbia. So fun to expand our palettes!