Three Hanging-Plant Layouts for Small Apartments (With Measurements)
Once you know how to put a hook in the ceiling, the next question is where to put three of them. Random placement is how you end up with plants that bump into each other, shade each other, or hang exactly where you walk. Here are three layouts we have used in real apartments, each with the measurements, so you can mark the ceiling with a pencil and get it right the first time.
Layout 1: The window cascade
Where: any window at least 30 inches wide with clear ceiling above it. Best for: a living room or bedroom window you look at from the sofa or bed.
Three hangers of different lengths hung in a diagonal across the upper half of the glass, so the pots step up from one side to the other. From inside the room you see a slope of greenery framing the view rather than blocking it.
Measurements for a 36-inch window. Mark the ceiling 8 inches out from the window wall (so pots clear the frame and any blinds). Place the hooks at 6, 18 and 30 inches from the left edge of the window: three hooks, 12 inches apart. Hang the 41-inch hanger from our set of three on the outer hook nearest the wall, the 35-inch in the middle and the 29-inch nearest the center of the room. On an 8-foot ceiling, that puts the pot bottoms at roughly 46, 52 and 58 inches from the floor: all above sill height, all in the light, none at head height.
Plants: fastest trailer on the longest hanger (pothos), something arching in the middle (spider plant), something fuller and lighter on the shortest (a small fern or string of hearts).
Watch out for: curtain rods. If you have a rod, add 4 inches to the distance from the wall so hangers do not tangle in the curtain when it opens.
Layout 2: The corner column
Where: a corner next to a window, or any corner with medium light. Best for: rooms with no spare wall or window space, or renters allowed one hook only.
One hook, several plants stacked vertically. A corner is dead space in most apartments and a column of plants fills it without taking floor area. The trick is one longer hanger above one shorter one, or a hanging planter above a plant stand, so you get two or three levels of green in a single 18-inch square.
Measurements. Mark the ceiling 12 inches from each wall of the corner. One hook. Hang a 10-inch self-watering hanging planter on its 18-inch chains; the pot bottom lands around 70 inches up. Directly below, place a plant stand or stool 24 to 30 inches tall with a medium plant on it, and a floor plant beside it if there is room. Three levels: 70 inches, 40 inches, floor.
Plants: a heavy trailer up top where it can hang freely (Boston fern or a mature pothos), an upright mid-plant on the stand (peace lily, calathea), and a tough floor plant (snake plant, ZZ). The corner plant gets less light than the window, so pick from the low-light end of the list.
Watch out for: the reach. You need to be able to lift the top planter down to refill it. Keep it under 6 feet from the floor unless you own a step stool you actually use.
Layout 3: The kitchen strip
Where: above a kitchen counter, sink or breakfast bar, under a window or good overhead light. Best for: herbs and small trailers, and anyone whose kitchen is the brightest room.
A straight row of two or three short hangers at the same height, spaced along the counter. This is the one place where a flat row looks right, because the counter edge is a straight line and the plants echo it. Keep them short so they clear your head and your hands at the counter.
Measurements. Mark the ceiling directly above the counter's front edge, or 6 inches back from it if you lean over the counter a lot. Space hooks 16 inches apart (which, handily, is the joist spacing in most homes, so every hook may land on wood). Use the 29-inch hangers or hanging planters on short chains, so pot bottoms sit at least 60 inches above the floor, about 24 inches above the counter.
Plants: herbs in small pots (basil, mint, thyme, parsley), or small pothos and tradescantia. Herbs drink fast in a warm kitchen, which makes the kitchen the best place in the house for self-watering pots; set the 7-inch pots into the hanger cradles and refill every week or so.
Watch out for: the stove. Never hang plants over or beside a cooktop; heat and grease will kill them and the cords are a fire risk. Keep the strip over the sink or a prep area.
Rules that apply to all three
Clearance. Pot bottoms should be above the top of your head anywhere you walk (about 72 inches for most households), or clearly out of the walking path. Over furniture, 6 inches above a sofa back or table top is enough to avoid brushing.
Spacing. Twelve inches between hooks is the minimum for 6- to 8-inch pots; the plants will grow into that gap within a season. Sixteen inches is more comfortable and often lines up with joists.
Light. Whatever the layout, the plant nearest the glass gets the most light. Put the sun lover there and the shade-tolerant plant deepest in the room.
Weight. Every hook holds one hanger, every hanger holds one pot, and each pot stays inside the rating on the hanger. If you are unsure, weigh the pot after watering before it goes up; our hanging guide covers hooks and joists.
Mark the ceiling with the measurements above, hold the empty hangers up to check the picture before you drill, and adjust an inch or two to taste. All three layouts use pieces from our Hanging Planters collection, and the first two go up in an afternoon.