September 2016: Hanging Plants Houseplants of the month

Surprising and calming, green and flowering hanging plants create unusual effects at heights where you wouldn’t expect to find greenery and flowers. This is why they’re in the spotlight in September. If you’re going to pay special attention to them in your shop, you could use the POS material which can be downloaded for free using the link at the bottom. 

Hanging plants and their story 

The eye-catching feature of flowering hanging plants is obviously the flowers, which lend an air of mystery to these houseplants. Ideal to use as a living flower curtain or flowering room divider, the surprising appearance of this range is a good match with customers who like unusual shapes and are looking for trendy plants.  

Origin and production Hanging plants

Some of the green and flowering hanging plants mentioned here originate from the tropical rainforests, where they grow as climbers. They are specially equipped for this with ingenious botanical tools such as adhesive roots, hooked spines, leaf or stem tendrils and winding leaf stems. When such a climber can no longer find any support, it adopts a creeping or hanging form. Other flowering hanging plants grow in drier regions and have strong succulent properties, enabling them to get through periods of reduced rainfall. 

What to look for when Hanging plants

• Check the pot size, the length of the tendrils and the plant’s shape and thickness and whether the plant is nice and full. For flowering hanging plants the stage of ripeness, the bud distribution and the number of potential flowering buds and flowers are also important. Also check the leaf distribution and the shape of the plant. 
• Different species of green and flowering hanging plants are affected by different pests and diseases. Look particularly for infestation with scale insects, brown scale or mealybugs. These are tricky for both the florist and the customer to deal with. These foliage plants can also be affected by red spider mite. This can be identified by a dull grey discoloration of the leaves. 
• Plants are sometimes kept too dry, in which case they will droop, have yellowing leaves or shed buds. This can also be caused by lack of light. 
• Green and flowering hanging plants must be free of brown spots on the leaves, often caused by leaving the soil standing in water for too long. There can also be limescale marks or water residue on the leaf, which detracts from the decorative value but does no further harm. 
• Green and flowering hanging plants are often tricky to transport and are therefore sometimes supplied in special packaging. The temperature for most plants must be at least 12 degrees Celsius or higher during transportation and storage. At lower temperatures it’s important to protect the plants from the cold by placing them in a sleeve.

Choice of Hanging plants 

Green and flowering hanging plants are available all year round. The most notable are Cissus, Columnea, Ceropegie woodii, Tradescantia, Rhipsalis, Asparagus, Aeschynanthus, Codonanthe, Hoya and Tillandsia.

Care tips for customers

• Green and flowering hanging plants with thick fleshy leaves need proportionally less water thanks to their succulent properties. Other species need some water every couple of days because the leaves are thinner and more fragile.
• Most flowering hanging plants require a warm, light spot, but prefer not to hang in bright sunlight. As a rule of thumb, the more flowers there are on the plant, the greater the need for light, and the lighter/more variegated the leaves the greater the need for light as well. 
• Water the plants regularly with water which is not too cold. The soil should not be allowed to dry out, but nor should there be excess water. Spray the leaves of hanging plants with leaves regularly - don’t spray the flowers. 
• Some plant food once every 2 to 4 weeks is a good idea to keep the plant looking good for a long time. Remove exhausted flowers and old leaves, and cut the tendrils back when they get too long. Flowering hanging plants are purely for decoration and not for consumption. 

Sales and display tips for Hanging plants 

• Green and flowering hanging plants are enjoying a big revival. That’s because many of the plants have air-purifying properties and fit well with the trend for natural and authentic shapes and bringing as much greenery into your home as possible. These are all important sales arguments. 
• These houseplants can be used in many creative ways in offices, student rooms and living rooms. Flowering hanging plants can create green partitions and form part of green walls. Stress that these plants can also climb if they have something to hold on to;  a flowering hanging plant doesn’t just grow down, but also upwards. 
• The houseplants can be used in both a traditional and modern setting. Using them horizontally, with the tendril draped in a bowl, offers original opportunities to enhance an interior with green and flowering hanging plants.

Images of Hanging plants 

You can download the images below free of charge.

Poster of Hanging plants

You can download the poster using the link below

09_poster-uk-hanging_plants.pdf