Four Tips for Container Vegetable Gardening
I’ve seen more folks ignore these guidelines and pay the price - so take this as coming from somebody who’s been there - done that, and watched other people ignore this advice over the years (and who return and say that I was right after all) :-)
Containers.
Using a container that is too small is the number one reason for failure. If not number one, it’s close so understand that if you can’t get at least 6 full shovels of soil into this container (and I’m talking heaping shovel fulls) then it’s likely to small.
Why so big? First - you need enough soil to hold the moisture your plants are going to require. When I grew tomatoes in plastic bags (cheapest container going) I used 6 shovels full after a bunch of trials - the deal was though that I *had* to water every day and even twice on some days. There was no way to skip a day (as in take a weekend off) or underwater or your plants would be water-starved.
So what’s wrong with a little water-starvation? If you do that to tomatoes while they are in critical stages of development, you’ll wind up with blossom end rot and all your work is for nothing. Other plants (peppers and greens) tend to go bitter while others simply won’t set fruit and you’ll get nothing for all your hard work.
Soils
Use artificial soil such as pro-mix, fafard or any other brand that’s mostly composed of peat moss.
Not garden soil! Garden soil turns to concrete after a few waterings and you need air spaces for the tender roots to grow and thrive.
Feeding
To succeed at container vegetable gardening, you have to feed your plants weekly. That’s not “weakly” but at least once a week.
You see when you water (see next section) the water takes the water-soluble nitrogen down and out of the container with it. So unless you replace it from the top, your plants will quickly run out of food. If you want great gardens, you have to feed.
I use fish emulsion on all my containers. It’s a bit stinky for a few minutes after I water it into my plants but it quickly disappears and all I have left is fast-growing plants.
Watering
Here’s the honest deal here. You have to water like mad to keep vegetables growing properly.
When the soil is “just” dry to the touch, you soak your pots until the water is running out the bottom. Every time you water, the water should pour out the bottom.
Then you walk away and touch the soil the next morning. If it is “just dry” to the touch, you soak it again. If your finger comes away wet, then you can leave it until later that afternoon and test it again.
That’s why you’re feeding regularly because all this water pouring out the bottom is taking your nutrients with it.
And if you don’t water properly, then you wind up without a crop.
Bottom line
Big enough containers.
Best soil
Feeding regularly
Watering
Do those things properly and you’re more than half-way home to great container vegetable gardening in your home landscaping.
Click here if you have a question about container vegetable gardening
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