the Hanging Gardens of Bouvier

gardening in pots hanging from trees & wires)

by Pam Green, © 2015

I've been gardening in pots hung from tree limbs and wire clothes-lines for many years. I started with just a few containers, and gradually the number increased. I grow a few herbs, intended for cooking, and I grow a variety of succulents. Succulents grow very well in the Sacramento Valley region as they do well in heat and requirre only infrequent water They don't like freezing temperatures, so for the couple of months when we sometimes get several hours of freeze I bring my favorites indoors and wrap the others in bubble wrap or plastic. (see section on the pots in winter). I'm in Zone 14, according to the Western Garden Book.

My succulents have done so well that I have plenty to give to friends. They are really easy to grow so long as you don't over-water them. I find the variety of shapes and colors interesting.

The clothes-line is braided wire cable with plastic covering, stronger and more enduring than ordinary clothes-line and well worth the slightly higher cost. where it contacts tree bark, I run it through sections of garden hose to prevent damage to the tree. String it as tight as possible, because the weight of the pots will create some sagging. I also hang a bird feeder, a wind-sock, and occasionally clothers that need to dry out on the line.

There are several advantages to gardening in containers, especially hanging pots :

• Hanging pots are out of reach of dogs (and hung from clothes-lines, also out of reach of cats), so no worries about possible toxic plants. While gardening books may give information on toxicity for humans, the toxicity for dogs (and even more so for cats) can be different ; for example, grapes are quite safe for humans, but can be seriously toxic for dogs.
• There's also the advantage of keeping herbs (or any plant that produces something you might want to eat) out of reach of male dog's urine marking (and some leg-lifting bitches too !)
• Hanging plants are out of reach of rabbits, gophers, and ground squirrels, thus they don't get eaten by these critters. (as well as not getting eatcn by your dogs) They are out of reach of some insects but not others. However they are out of reach of beneficial worms unless you add some.
• You can move containered plants from one location to another. Perhaps the plant wants more sun or less sun, so try another spot in your yard. Switching the pot around 180 degrees can even out growth and result in a more symetrical plant.
• You can bring tender plants indoors during cold weather. (note : keep size of containers down to the weight you can easily carry, or get help with the ones that are too heavy. Weight is why I now use plastic on the larger ones.)
• If you change homes, you can take your plants with you to your new home.
• Plants that tend to be "invasive" , ie spread out and take over areas, can be kept contained in containers (this is also true for ground containers)
• With a few holes in the bottom of the pot, you have excellent drainage, which most plants want. I drill several small holes in plastic pots, fill the bottom with dog hair, then add the potting mix, either straight potting soil or mixed with sand or whatever this plant wants.
• Visibility from your porch or windows may be better than for plants on the ground.

I don't have much else in the way of garden. My trees are native ones, mostly Koelreuteria paniculata (the tree in the photo) , which is very summer-drought hardy (this year I did water my morst valued ones because we are in 4th year of year-round drought). Wild mustard comes up in summer. Amaryllis belladona, called "Naked Ladies", grows wild on its own (and keeps making more bulbs faster than I can give them away). I also have a fig tree , "BrownTurkey", outside of the yard, providing delicious figs during late summer. This year I planted a Trumpet Honeysuckle vine and a Passion Flower vine on a fence that's outside the yard, but I'm not sure they will do well in the long run. I no longer have any lawn, as in drought it doesn't make sense to water it so it grows and has to be mowed. Just a few little bits of grass for the dogs to nibble seem to have survived this summer. There are also some huge ancient Olive trees on the property and a few Oak trees and a few Elderberry trees or bushes

My yard is really for the dogs. So plenty of shade from trees(or the dogs and for the house), and the other plants hung high out of their way. It works for us.

We are surrounded by agricultural land (row crops, orchards) and we are only half a mile from a creek that has a lot of native vegetation and wildlife.

the pots in winter

(frost-guarded with greenhouse-wrap)

Here in rural Davis, CA, about a dozen miles west of Sacramento, summers are hot and dry and winters are moderately cold, sometimes windy, and the only time we can hope for rain. Our coldest nights can hit frezzing and a few degrees below that.

So for the period when freeze is a risk, I bring as many of the pots indoors to place where they get window light. They have old dog dishes under the pots to catch water drainage. They are in my front room which is unheated, but will remain safely above freezing.. ( I don't have any central heat, just a wood stove that modestly warms its own room and somewhat my office and bedroon). So these plants go somewhat dormant in these winter months

I'm no longer able to bring all the pots indoors, especially the larger ones which are too heavy for me to carry.. (Yes, of course I could get a friend to help, but there really isn't enough room) So the ones that stay outdoors get their own "greenhouse wrap". They get wrapped with plastic sheet and / or covered with old dog "Elizabetthan collars" , ie platic cones. They also get another layer of dog-hair mulch (above the summer layer). This year I added string and snaps to some of the cones so that on warm sunny days I can lift the cones up and suspend them so the plants get more sunlight. Some sun gets through the cones. Again the plants are going to become somewhat dormant during winter. I can still water them with a long spout watering can, either through a gap at top of the wrap or by lifting the lower edge.

Almost all these plants are succulents, so they are very hardy but would be harmed if subjected to freezing. A couple pots of herbs are annuals which will die anyway so are not wrapped.

Below you can see wrapped pots, one with the cone lifted. The dog is Lady Bug, also known as Lady Baa Baa, a Kelpie or Kelpie cross bitch who came as a temporary foster (for a week or so , pending transport to another rescue) but insisted on becoming part of my family.