Planning a Vegetable Garden

Posts Tagged ‘How to Grow Vegetables’

Growing vegetables in containers is an option for almost anyone — even those who have the space for a tradtional garden. What are the upsides and downsides of container vegetable gardens?

What Kinds of Vegetables?

While you can grow just about any veggie in a container, some are better-adapted than others.  For example, a determinate tomato plant is an excellent candidate; sweet corn is not.

While you could grow sweet corn in containers, you’d need an awful lot of them, because corn is a wind-pollinated vegetable.  Normally the minimum number of corn plants you’d want is 4 rows of 4 plants (16 total).   So in general, corn isn’t a good option (but certainly possible if you have the room and the containers).

The only other plants I wouldn’t suggest for a container vegetable garden are pumpkins and watermelons.  Both of them get huge and for the most part, you can’t trellis them (unlike most other curcubits).

So aside from these three, you have a lot of options, most of which depends on your space and the size of your containers.

What Size Containers?

I’ve done my share of container gardening, in spite of having lots of room for a traditional garden; right now I have both.  The most often used containers in my garden is 5-gallon size, followed by 3-gallon.  I also have a few 10-gallon and 15-gallon containers, where I grow the bigger plants.

What about the little containers?  While I have successfully grown vegetables in 1 gallon pots, it was a bit more trouble than it was worth.  Unless you are growing the veggies inside under lights, I don’t recommend them.

I’ve grown the following very nicely in a 5-gallon container:

• Beans
• Lettuce
• Cucumbers
• Peppers
• Spinach
• Summer Squash
• Tomatoes
• Zucchini

I’m about to experiment with some cantaloupe in a container as well.

When it comes to 3-gallon containers, my best luck has been with the shorter determinate tomatoes and peppers (sweet and hot).  Bell peppers seem to do better in 5-gallon pots, though (at least for me).

I personally haven’t tried veggies such as eggplant, carrots, broccoli, potatoes, cabbage, etc. mainly because they aren’t vegetables that I choose to grow -or – my climate isn’t suitable.  But certainly they can be grown in containers!

Choosing Your Garden Location

It’s very little different from choosing a location for a traditional garden.  You want at least 6 hours of direct sun per day (8 is better) and easy access to water — container-grown veggies drink quite a bit!  It’s best if you can avoid a very windy location, but if you can set up a windbreak of sorts, that would work.  A windy location dries out the plants fast.

How much space do you have available?  Whether you have a large patio or a small balcony, your vegetable plants will still need room between them for air circulation.   They also need to be spaced so that a tall plant doesn’t shade out a shorter one.

Plus, you need to be able to move around easily to water the plants and harvest your crop!

One final thought; you are potentially going to be hauling  (heavy) bags of potting soil and compost to fill these containers; consider how you’re going to get the soil/compost to the location you’ve chosen.  I’ve discovered that 40 pounds of compost + 40 pounds of organic potting mix fills roughly four 5-gallon containers.  Not necessarily a problem if you are on a ground floor; might be a problem if you have to climb stairs.

Growing Vegetables in Containers – Final Notes

Growing vegetables in containers can be very, very rewarding.  But there are two things that you will need to consider, to make your plants happy and producing.

In containers, plants need more water and fertilizer than if they were in the garden.  More water because the soil in the containers dries out faster.  More fertilizer because more watering dilutes the fertilizer faster.  And especially with 3 and 5 gallon containers, there isn’t a whole lot of space in which to find extra nutrients.

You’ll also need to consider which plants are “greedy”.  Squash in particular likes to be well-watered and well-fed.   Cukes and other such plants aren’t far behind.

The general rule of thumb is to feed your vegetable plants twice as often, with half as much.  For example, I use a fish emulsion/kelp liquid fertilizer, and I dilute it to half strength — but feed twice as often.

So grow your vegetables in containers and with just a little extra care,  enjoy a  nice harvest!

Home vegetable gardening — it’s a great alternative to grocery-store vegetables.  If you’ve never eaten home-grown veggies, you are in for a real taste-treat!   Large or small, growing your own food is delicious, rewarding and can provide relief for your food budget.

Getting Started is Easy

It’s easy to get started with growing your own vegetables.  You basically need:

• A sunny space, that you can protect from animals and/or people (if needed).
• Easy access to water.
• Good, well-drained soil (you can add compost to make it better).
• Vegetable seeds, bulbs or plants.
• A few hand tools, such as a shovel, spade and perhaps a hoe.

While there are other gardening tools and equipment you can rent, buy or build, the above will get you started.

If you have a spot in your yard, that’s great; but you can also plant a smaller vegetable garden in containers!  And for those of you who don’t even have a space for containers, in some communities you can rent a plot in a communal garden.

Choosing Your Vegetables

The great part about growing your own home vegetable garden is that you can grow what you like!  Not fond of broccoli?  Don’t grow it.  Love tomatoes?  Grow some extra!

The one thing you do need to consider, though, is your climate — not all veggies grow well everywhere.  For example, I live in South Florida, and broccoli is rather difficult; it normally doesn’t get cool enough for a good crop.  On the other hand, hot chile peppers love it here!

Make yourself a list of all your favorite vegetables that you’d like to grow.  Now consider the space you have available for a garden (and time in which to work it).  For example, most squash, pumpkins, watermelon and cucumbers sprawl and can take up a lot of space.  If you have a very small gardening area, that might be a problem.

You may have to cut down on the number of different vegetables to start with.  But that’s OK if you do; just begin with what you love best and then you can go from there.

Time of Year to Grow

Obviously, Summer is the “prime time” for vegetable gardening in most places.  But ironically enough, it’s one of the worst times for other areas (like where I live), due to the heat and humidity.   Some vegetables prefer cooler weather, so they may be sown early or late in the season.  Other veggies like it hot, and can be grown in the heat of the summer.  So get to know your vegetables a bit, so you know the best time to plant.

Some “hot summer” vegetables include:

• Tomatoes
• Peppers (especially chile peppers)
• Melons (OK, melons are fruits…but then again, tomatoes are also fruits!)
• Summer squash
• Cucumbers
• Pole Beans

Some that like slightly cooler weather include:

• Broccoli
• Lettuce
• Spinach
• Cabbage
• Winter squash

Obviously, that’s not a complete list, but these are some of the most popular for home vegetable gardening. You might want to check out the when to plant vegetables post for more information.