5 beautiful ways to transition your summer hanging baskets for fall – gardening experts share their favorite ideas for instant impact

I take pride in my hanging baskets. It's a feature that decorates my front door and its the first thing you see as you approach my home. Although it's a smaller gardening space, hanging baskets are the optimal place to put on seasonal displays that wow visitors and bring joy every time you pass them.

As summer comes to an end, your hanging baskets might be looking a little worse for wear. But, it doesn't mean it's time to retire them for the year. There is so much you can do to refresh and spruce up summer hanging baskets for fall.

Whether it's switching out the entire thing for fiery colored plants for hanging baskets, or doing a little bit of pruning and adding in playful embellishments for the fall season. Here, I ask gardening experts to share their favorite ways to transition summer hanging baskets for fall impact.

5 stunning ways to switch up your hanging baskets for fall

When deciding what to do with your fall hanging basket, consider fall planter ideas. Many of these can be recreated in a hanging basket, too, though there may need to be some adjustments based on growing habits of plants and the size of your baskets.

1. Plant fall blooms for instant impact

This is something I've done to transition summer hanging baskets for fall: remove everything an start over with the best fall flowers for pots. It's the easiest way to get instant fall impact.

'Summer's heat-loving blooms are often spent by early fall. By completely replanting with cold-hardy flowers, you get a vibrant, fresh display of seasonal color,' says Amy Enfield, senior horticulturist at ScottsMiracle-Gro.

Top choices include growing chrysanthemums (view the mums collection available at Walmart) and violas, both of which bloom throughout fall while offering the most beautiful orange, pink, yellow, pink and purple hues.

When doing this, you may be wondering if you can reuse potting soil. The answer is yes, if none of your spring or summer plants had any pests or disease issues. However, to give you fall plants the best chance, mix in some fresh compost for a boost of essential plant nutrients.

Amy Enfield

Amy has 30 years of experience in the lawn and garden industry and has been with ScottsMiracle-Gro for 12 years. She has a BS and MS in Horticulture from Michigan State University and a PhD in Plant and Environmental Sciences from Clemson University.

2. Refresh your baskets with some TLC

If your hanging baskets are still flourishing, there's no need to completely remove all the blooms. But, fall provides the opportunity to do some tidying up and freshen up your baskets for the season.

The best late summer flowers will continue blooming into fall and by deadheading, you can extend their season.

'Regular deadheading prevents a plant from making seeds and entering its dormant phase, thus tricking it into continuing to bloom,' explains gardening expert Caroline Ervin. 'Keep deadheading into early fall so the plant delays going into dormancy,' she says.

You can use essential pruning tools to do this, for example with these pruning snips from Amazon, or pinch smaller blooms off with your fingertips.

Something I also did when sprucing up my summer hanging baskets for fall is take cuttings. More specifically, I took pelargonium cuttings (using bypass pruning shears, like these from Amazon) to propagate and overwinter in my greenhouse, ready for planting in my hanging baskets again in spring.

Doing this with tender perennials, as well as saving seeds from annuals in your baskets, means you can propagate your plants and grow them again next year for free.

Caroline Ervin

Caroline is a landscape designer. She has worked with clients since 2007 to install and maintain small and large residential gardens in Washington DC. She has more than 20 years hands-on experience gardening.

3. Add foliage to your hanging basket

When you think of the best plants for fall color, lots of bronze colored foliage likely comes to mind. This doesn't have to be limited to borders and beds, as you can spruce up summer hanging baskets for fall by adding vibrant vines and plants for foliage interest.

'By focusing on plants with interesting leaves in shades of silver, bronze, purple, and deep green, you can create a modern, high-impact basket that provides lasting visual interest well into the cooler months,' Amy says.

In between your blooms, add plants like dusty miller (starter plants from Amazon)and coleus (starter plants from Amazon). This will brighten up your baskets will fall color instantly.

4. Plant herbs for fall fragrance

Fall is an important harvesting season for gardeners, so why not incorporate this in your hanging baskets? Using the best aromatic herbs, you can turn your hanging baskets into a sensory display, giving off delicious scents as you wander past.

Choose hardy herbs for this, so they last well into the frosty season. Rosemary (plant from Walmart), thyme (plant from Walmart), and oregano (plant from Walmart) are all good choices.

As well as smelling great, these herbs also provide interesting leaf shapes for your hanging basket, boosting the fall-feel of them.

Plus, it offers a unique take on herb planter ideas, so you can harvest fresh herbs from your hanging baskets throughout fall and into winter.

You can even add some salad crops and microgreens into the mix to turn your hanging basket into a true feast. This microgreen seeds pack from Amazon offers a wide variety.

5. Add seasonal embellishments

For a fun twist and to embrace both cozy and spooky season, add some fall embellishments to your hanging baskets.

There are lots of outdoor fall décor ideas you can take on board for this. For example, this fall decoration kit from Amazon comes with pumpkins, pinecones, and acorns that can make sweet additions to your hanging basket.

Or, for something more subtle, swap out your hanging planter for planters made earthy materials. Think wicker baskets (like this set of six wicker hanging baskets from Amazon), which contribute to the fall color palette.

I particularly like the use of dried flowers and foliage in the wicker baskets here. You could even add in some of the best plants for seedheads to embrace the change in seasons in your hanging planters.

FAQs

How do you overwinter a hanging basket?

To overwinter a hanging basket, you need to take note of what the plants in your basket need. If they are tender, it's a good idea to provide extra insulation for plant roots. You can do this by mulching and even moving the basket somewhere warmer, such as in a greenhouse. Alternatively, consider switching out your plants for a winter hanging basket idea, with hardy plants that can tolerate frosty conditions.

After you spruce up summer hanging baskets for fall, don't forget to tick other things off your fall gardening checklist. This includes collecting fallen leaves and making leaf mulch, a valuable resource for the winter garden.

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