Getting big yields in small spaces
Vegetables bred for containers are all the rage
Q My husband and I find ourselves in a new chapter in our lives. We have recently retired and have moved into a condo. With the move we have left behind our vegetable garden, but we still want to grow some of our own vegetables. We would like to start off our first year by having a salad garden in containers. If you could give us the name of a lettuce and a tomato that would be small enough to grow in containers but still give us a good harvest we would really appreciate it. We have a fairly large balcony that faces southwest.
A Congratulations on your retirement and good for you for wanting to continue to grow some of your own produce. As you may know from previous columns, I am a big proponent of grow-your-own, whether it be an in-ground garden or a container one. The good thing about container gardening is that plant breeders continue to be very active in developing new varieties suited for just that purpose.
I have a couple of varieties to share with you that should be just the thing. When it comes to lettuce, one of the best is called Little Gem Pearl. This variety is a special selection of the everpopular ‘Little Gem’ variety. This compact lettuce produces small hearts that are both sweet and have good flavour. The variety is perfect for growing in containers and small spaces, with a height and spread of 20 centimetres. One head is the perfect size for a salad for two people. Seeds are available online at Vesey’s Seeds.
My personal favourite when it comes to small-space lettuce is a variety called Tom Thumb. This is an heirloom variety that forms the smallest heads of Bibb lettuce. The heads are the size of a baseball, making them perfect to grow in a container. You can find seeds at Mckenzie Seeds online.
Red Robin is a great tomato variety for containers. Red Robin seeds produce hardy, compact, dwarf plants that deliver high yields of flavourful cherry tomatoes. These tomatoes do very well in containers. I have not tried them yet, although according to West Coast Seeds these tomatoes will deliver the highest yields in outside containers, but they will also set fruit in lower light indoor conditions and still deliver moderate yields.
Q I took your advice in the past and planted two Russian sage plants and was very pleased with their performance. Now I would like to know if I have to prune them back or not. I have called three greenhouses, and one says to prune and the other two say not to touch the plants. What is your opinion?
A I have Russian sage myself, and I recommend cutting it back to 15-20 centimetres above the ground. This will encourage the plant to bush out rather than having just a few long, tall shoots. This is a plant that I feel is underutilized in the landscape. The silvery green foliage, along with the lavender-coloured blooms, make it a standout in the back of my border.
Q I have had terrible luck trying to grow annuals. All of my friends always put me to shame with their annuals, and I have tried growing all types with the same story. I water them regularly and fertilize them, and I get tons of leaves by very few flowers. Can you help me?
A I think the problem might be the fertilizing. I think you are using a fertilizer that has too much nitrogen, which is the first number in the fertilizer formula. A flowering plant fertilizer should have a higher second number, such as 5-10-5 or 15-30-15. I would recommend fertilizing at one-quarter the strength recommended by the manufacturer every second time you water.