They get big and bulky fast, and are often full of things you may not want in your pond, like dragonfly nymph, and potentially other parasites. If you are determined to give it a try, fill a big tote with either a 10% bleach solution or appropriate potassium permaganate solution, and clean those plants top to bottom, especially if you have fish, or want fish someday. Then rinse, rinse, and rinse some more. Instead of a flimsy basket, go for a heavy duty tote with holes drilled in the side for water movement. And due to weight, I’ll suggest instead of pea gravel, try loose quilt batting with a topping of hand sized rock to keep it in place, the rocks are easy to remove, and the batting isn’t very heavy.