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Balcony plants transform the balcony into a magnificent sea of flowers. Hanging plants bloom particularly lavishly on your balcony, as their overhanging shoots grow downwards like a waterfall.

In a nutshell

  • Hanging balcony plants form magnificent seas of flowers
  • Hanging plants are suitable for balcony boxes and/or hanging baskets
  • Care should be taken when cleaning

Hanging plants for the balcony

There are balcony plants with overhanging growth from many plants that also grow upright. Therefore, the hanging varieties often have additional designations such as:

  • "pendula" ("pendulous")
  • Cascade or Cascade Series (Waterfall)
  • fountain

In addition to these mostly special breeds, climbing plants are also "converted" into hanging plants for the balcony. Because many of these plants will let their tendrils droop if you have to do without help. The same applies to ground cover. If they lack soil, they grow hanging out of the hanging basket.

For sunny locations

Blue Mauritius (Convolvulus sabatius)

Source: Krzysztof Golik, Convolvulus sabatius 'Blue Cascade' in Jardin des Plantes de Toulouse 01, edited by Plantopedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
  • Shoot length: 50 to 100 centimeters
  • flower: funnel-shaped
  • Flowering period: May to September/October
  • Flower color: blue, purple, lavender
  • Watering: needs a lot of water
  • Fertilize: weekly with a compound fertilizer
  • Cleaning: necessary

Blue daisy (Brachyscome iberidifolia)

  • Shoot length: up to 60 centimeters
  • Flower: similar to marguerites
  • Flowering period: April to September
  • Flower color: white, pink, violet (lavender), blue
  • Watering: regularly
  • Fertilize: every two weeks (iron-containing compound fertilizer)
  • Cleaning: necessary

Dipladenia (Mandevilla)

Dipladenia (Mandevilla)
  • Shoot length: up to 120 centimeters
  • Flower: funnel flowers
  • Flowering period: May to October
  • Flower color: white, yellow, pink, red
  • Location: sunny, does not tolerate blazing sun
  • Watering: moderate but regular
  • Fertilize: every one to two weeks
  • Cleaning: not necessary
  • highly toxic

Notice: The white-flowering species "Mandevilla laxa" is often also called Chilean jasmine.

Blue fan flower (Scaevola aemula)

  • Shoot length: 40 to 70 centimeters
  • Flower: asymmetrical, fan-like, semi-circular
  • Flowering period: May to October
  • Flower color: white, pink, blue
  • Watering: needs a lot of water
  • Fertilize: every two weeks
  • Cleaning: not necessary

Triplet flower (Bougainvillea)

  • Shoot length: up to 120 centimeters
  • Flower: funnel-shaped, star-shaped
  • Flowering period: May to October
  • Flower color: violet
  • Watering: regularly
  • Fertilize: every two weeks
  • Clean out: recommended

Hanging geraniums (Pelargonium x peltatum, Pelargonium peltatum hybrid)

  • Shoot length: up to 150 centimeters
  • Flower: simple, semi-double, double
  • Flower color: white, pink, pink, light red, red, dark wine red, lilac-black-red, two-tone
  • Flowering period: May to October
  • Watering: needs plenty of water, tolerates short periods of drought
  • Fertilize: once a week
  • Cleaning: necessary

Tip: No cleaning is necessary with the Cascade series.

Trailing Petunias (Petunia Hybride)

  • Shoot length: up to several meters
  • flower: funnel-shaped
  • Flower color: pink magenta, dark red, light red, also variegated (e.g.: yellow-red)
  • Flowering period: May to October
  • Location: sheltered from wind and rain
  • Watering: regular water supply
  • Fertilize: once a week (compound fertilizer containing iron)
  • Cleaning: necessary

Notice: The shoot length of trailing petunias varies. There are slightly overhanging varieties for hanging baskets, and really long-growing varieties for balcony boxes.

Hanging verbs (Verbena x hybrida)

  • Shoot length: up to 50 centimeters
  • Flower: plate-like flower spikes
  • Flowering time: April to October
  • Flower color: white, pink, red, purple, also variegated
  • Location: tolerates full sun, high heat, wind and rain
  • Watering: regularly, never let it dry out completely
  • Fertilize: once a week
  • Cleaning: necessary

Tip: There are special varieties for traffic lights that grow particularly densely.

Hussar button (Sanvitalia procumbens)

  • Hanging varieties: Starbini, Aztekengold
  • Shoot length: up to 30 centimeters
  • flower: small, radiating
  • Flowering period: May to October
  • Flower color: yellow
  • Location: tolerates partial shade, defies wind and rain
  • Watering: regularly and sufficiently
  • Fertilize: every one to two weeks
  • Cleaning: not necessary

Indian Mint (Satureja douglasii)

  • other names: hanging mint, hanging savory, yerba buena
  • Shoot length: up to 250 centimeters, on average 150 centimeters
  • Leaves: light green, rounded
  • Flower: small, inconspicuous
  • Flowering period: May to October
  • Flower color: white
  • Watering: regularly, slowly
  • Cleaning: necessary

Notice: The hanging plant Satureja douglasii exudes a mint-like smell on your balcony.

Jasmine Nightshade (Solanum jasminoides)

  • Shoot length: up to one meter
  • Flower: star-shaped
  • Flowering time: April to November
  • Flower color: snow white
  • Position: Sun, also accepts partial shade
  • Watering: high water requirement, daily in summer
  • Fertilize: once a week
  • Cleaning: not necessary

Notice: Since the summer jasmine displaces many other plants, it is better to keep it in a hanging basket.

Purslane (Portulaca grandiflora)

  • Shoot length: up to 50 centimeters
  • Flower: bowl-shaped
  • Flowering period: May to September
  • Flower color: white, yellow, orange, pink, red
  • Watering: sparingly
  • Fertilize: every four weeks
  • Cleaning: necessary

Notice: When the sun is not shining, the purslane keeps its flowers closed.

Black-eyed Susan (Thunbergia alata)

  • Shoot length: up to 150 centimeters
  • Flower: funnel flowers
  • Flowering period: June to October
  • Flower color: white, yellow, orange, pink, red
  • Watering: do not let it dry out
  • Fertilize: every two weeks
  • Cleaning: necessary

Surfinia Petunias (Petunia x atkinsiana)

  • Shoot length: up to one meter
  • flower: funnel-shaped
  • Flowering period: May/June to October
  • Flower color: white, yellow, pink, red, purple, dark red, violet, blue, also variegated
  • Location: Sun, tolerates rain far better than other petunias
  • Watering: needs a lot of water
  • Fertilize: once or twice a week
  • Cleaning: necessary

Magic bells (Calibrachoa x hybrida)

  • Shoot length: 30 to 50 centimeters
  • Flower: small funnel flowers
  • Flowering time: April to October
  • Flower color: almost all colors, also variegated
  • Location: tolerates wind and rain
  • Watering: regularly
  • Fertilize: occasionally
  • Cleaning: not necessary

(Golden) bucks (Bidens ferulifolia)

  • Shoot length: 50 to 80 centimeters
  • Flower: many small star-shaped flowers
  • Flowering period: April/May to October
  • Flower color: yellow, orange, multicolored (yellow and orange shades)
  • Watering: regularly
  • Fertilize: weekly
  • Clean out: recommended

Sun to semi-shade

Bacopa (Sutera cordata, Sutera diffusa, Chaenostoma cordatum)

  • also called snowflake flower in the trade
  • Shoot length: 50 centimeters
  • Flower: small, plate-like
  • Flowering period: May to October
  • Flower color: white, pink, lilac, blue
  • Location: sun to semi-shade
  • Watering: regularly
  • Fertilize: once a week
  • Cleaning: necessary

Wire shrub (Muehlenbeckia complexa)

  • Shoot length: a good 100 centimeters
  • ornamental foliage plant
  • Watering: keep evenly moist
  • Fertilize: once a month
  • Cleaning: not necessary

Golden Pennywort (Lysimachia nummularia)

Source: AnRo0002, 20221031Lysimachia nummularia1, Edited from Plantopedia, CC0 1.0
  • Shoot length: a good 50 centimeters
  • Flower: small, bowl-shaped
  • Flowering period: May to July/August
  • Flower color: yellow
  • Location: no blazing sun
  • Watering: high water requirement, do not let dry out
  • Fertilize: once a month
  • Cleaning: necessary
  • Variety: Yellow-leaved Pennywort "Aurea" (yellowish leaves)

Hanging carnations (Dianthus caryophyllus)

Source: Photo by David J. Stang, Dianthus caryophyllus CFPC Malea 1zz, Edited by Plantopedia, CC BY-SA 4.0
  • Other trivial names: Mountain hanging pink, Tyrolean hanging pink, Engadin hanging pink, Swiss hanging pink
  • Shoot length: up to 50 centimeters
  • Flower: filled
  • Flowering period: May/June to October
  • Flower color: white, pink, red, purple, yellow
  • Location: Sun (preferred) to partial shade
  • Watering: need a lot of water, water mornings and evenings on hot summer days
  • Fertilize: every two weeks
  • Cleaning: necessary

harp bush (Plectranthus fruticosus)

  • Shoot length: up to 100 centimeters
  • giving structure between summer flowers or as a solitaire in the traffic light
  • Ornamental foliage plant: Heart-shaped, green with a white edge
  • Watering: regularly
  • Fertilize: once or twice a month
  • intense smell drives away mosquitoes and moths ("moth king")

Notice: In the garden trade, the harp shrub is often sold under the name "frankincense" because of its scent.

Loyal to men (Lobelia erinus)

The hanging men-loyal varieties are available in specialist garden shops under the name "Cascade series" or "Lobelia erinus pendula". They are perfect hanging plants for your balcony.

  • Shoot length: up to one meter
  • Flower: small, bowl-shaped
  • Flowering period: May to September
  • Flower color: white, pink, red, blue, purple, lavender
  • Location: Sun to semi-shade, tolerates high heat
  • Watering: regularly and sufficiently
  • Fertilize: once a week
  • Cleaning: necessary

silver rain (Dichondra argentea)

  • Shoot length: up to 180 centimeters
  • ornamental foliage plant
  • leaves: heart-shell-shaped, rounded
  • Flower: yellow-green
  • Watering: keep evenly moist
  • Fertilize: once a month
  • Varieties: Emerald Falls (medium green), Silver Falls (silvery)

partial shade to full shade

Hanging fuchsias (Fuchsia x hybrida)

  • Shoot length: up to 60 centimeters
  • Flower: Bellflowers
  • Flowering time: April to October
  • Flower color: many colors, also variegated
  • Location: Partial shade and shady places
  • Watering: regularly
  • Fertilize: every two weeks (low-phosphorus fertilizer)
  • Cleaning: necessary

Notice: Hanging fuchsias look better in traffic lights than in balcony boxes. Triphylla hybrids tolerate sun very well.

Zebra traffic light herb (Tradescantia zebrina)

  • Shoot length: up to 150 centimeters
  • Foliage ornamental plant: silvery-white or silvery-dark violet stripes
  • leaves: heart-shaped
  • Location: bright, shady, semi-shady
  • Watering: rather keep dry
  • Fertilize: every two weeks
  • regular pruning of older shoots

frequently asked Questions

Do hanging balcony plants need wider balcony boxes?

No, you can use normal balcony boxes. In order for the hanging plants to grow over the edge faster, you should plant them at a slight angle to the outer edge. Plants that only slightly overhang work well for the side edges.

What are structural hanging plants?

Plants that provide structure are ornamental leaf plants that are usually placed in the hanging basket between the flowering plants. They serve as a kind of partition and put the flowering balcony plants even more in the limelight.

Can I also keep balcony plants that grow hanging in a bucket?

This is basically possible if you use a planter with the appropriate height. So that the view “from above” is just as pretty, you should combine the hanging plants with upright plants.

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Garden plants