Decorate for Halloween: Pansies in Halloween Buckets

Halloween is coming and nothing's more fun than using a gardening idea to decorate for Halloween. For a unique look--one that will make you the decorating star of the neighborhood and give you the status of a gardening green thumb--plant pansies in Halloween buckets.

Collect Halloween Buckets
Trick-or-treat buckets that look like jack-o-lanterns, ghosts, or skeletons are available at most retail stores such as Target or K-Mart. The price is fairly cheap, and they're a great way to decorate for Halloween. Retailers start putting the Halloween buckets on the shelves at the end of summer, which gives plenty of time for planting the pansies for strong fall growth. Another cheap alternative is to hit the yard sales. They can sometimes be found for 25 cents each and that's a price that can't be beat.

Prepare the Halloween Buckets
Some of the buckets will already have a hole in the bottom, which allows for drainage. However, for those that don't, drill or poke several small holes. The thinner Halloween buckets might crack, but that's not a worry as long as the crack doesn't run up the sides.

Plant the Pansies
Pansies usually become available in gardening centers for fall planting at the end of summer. Allow several plants per bucket (or more if you want closer growth or have larger buckets). Fill bucket to within one inch of the top with potting soil. Plant pansies and then, water them well.

Fertilize Often
Flower gardening always requires fertilizer to keep the plants blooming. A 9-59-8 formulation is preferred, but may be harder to find, and sometimes is more expensive. A 15-30-15 formulation is more readily available and works well, too.

Locate the "Boo-tiful Pansies" in Fun Places
To decorate for Halloween, place them on front steps, porches, picnic tables in the back yard, or even lining driveways (as long as there aren't neighborhood vandals who will nab them). Remember to use good gardening techniques, and keep them watered during the fall. They can even overwinter in areas that don't have extreme cold, by covering with mulch before the first snow, and placing them in a north-facing area so they aren't constantly freezing and thawing.

Using Halloween buckets will not only provide a fun, fall gardening opportunity--few can resist the happy faces of pansies--but will also present a creative way to decorate for Halloween. The "Boo-tiful Pansies" will look great no matter where they're placed when decorating for the fall holidays.

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