Container gardens are perfect for small spaces
Living in a condo or home with a tiny yard is not a limitation to growing your own food
Do you live in an apartment, condo, townhome or a home with a tiny yard? Do you think you can’t grow vegetables in your small space?
This final column in my threepart series taking us back to gardening basics — for new gardeners or those getting back into the practice — will let you know that space is not a limitation to growing your own food.
Growing vegetables in containers has been a favourite topic of mine for many years. It can be done and done well. Imagine a one-container salad garden with lettuce, dwarf cukes and cherry tomatoes all growing in the same container. You will never go back to store bought produce again. Trust me!
This whole genre of gardening continues to evolve with new and innovative devices, methods and techniques for producing more and better vegetables in smaller spaces.
Plant breeders are continuing to develop vegetables that are designed to be grown in containers. This means you can grow just about any vegetable in any container. How about growing lettuce in a grocery bag? Or potatoes in a garbage bag?
Here is a list of tips for planting vegetables in containers:
Your container absolutely needs to have drainage. If it doesn’t you will need to drill a few holes to let the excess water drain away.
Choose an appropriate container size. Small containers mean less soil and less nutrients. If you want to grow root crops like carrots, a deeper container is the way to go.
Choose a good quality potting mix. Don’t always go for the cheaper brands which, in some cases, will have large chunks of wood or other debris, and occasionally even pests.
Keep your containers up off the deck, patio or balcony. I use small stones or pot feet. This elevation allows the water to drain freely. Your vegetable container garden doesn’t have to be only on the ground so consider using hanging baskets. The vertical dimension can work very well.
If you are gardening on a balcony more than a few stories high, for example, environmental factors can weigh in. Wind can dry out containers more quickly. Check your potting mix frequently after planting. Watering more often during the hot summer months is a must for most containers. Also, don’t just water the top of the soil, keep watering until it runs out of the drain holes in the bottom.
Exposure is critical. A minimum of six hours of sun is essential for most vegetables but check specific requirements for the vegetable you’re planting as some, like celery, prefer a little less sun than others.
Potting mix is very poor in nutrients so adding slow-release fertilizer is a great idea. If you have the time and inclination, weekly feedings with an all-purpose, water-based fertilizer like 20-20-20 works well.
Are there any vegetables I can’t grow in a container? Not that I know of. There are dwarf vegetables of nearly every type on the market now.
If you have a little more space in your small-scale garden you might look at a new product on the market called Vege Pod (I’ve provided the link in this column online). This product is a raised bed system that is self-watering and comes with a canopy to keep out insects and pests.
Vegetables in containers are not only functional but can be very decorative. Picture a container with purple basil, cherry tomatoes and chives — it’s a salad garden and beauty all in one. Rainbow Swiss chard, with its multicoloured stems as a backdrop to the fine lace foliage of dwarf carrots, looks stunning.
I’ve included several links online offering more ideas on decorative vegetable containers, as well as articles.
The end of this series is not the end of Gardening 101. Send your questions by email at filipskigerald@gmail.com, tweet at @justaskjerry01 or check out my book, Just Ask Jerry. I try to answer each and every question whether it's in a column or personally.