How to Grow a Container Garden

Container gardens provide a restful sight.

You can grow a container garden even if you don't have a lot of room. You can grow plants in pots, a planter or containers on the patio. Even the smallest porch can boast a crop of vegetables or a hanging basket of flowers.

Difficulty:

Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Grow light
• Potting mix
• 5-gallon buckets

1. Start annuals such as pansies, marigolds, nasturtiums, snapdragons, periwinkles and lobelia flowers, and vegetables including tomatoes and peppers indoors under a grow light.

2. Assemble planter boxes, clay pots, wooden barrels, hanging baskets and large flowerpots as containers for your garden. Adapt 5-gallon buckets for the vegetables that are going to be big or bulky; carrots, radishes or herbs can be grown in a window planter.

3. Fill containers to within 2 inches of the top with a soil mix that drains well and retains moisture. Add up to 15 percent compost. Place vegetable containers where they can receive at least five hours or more of sunlight daily. Cabbage and lettuce tolerates shade more, while tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, beets and carrots need lots of sun. Vegetables that mature early include leafy lettuce, mustard cress or silver beets.

4. Transplant young seedlings into the containers. Fertilize vegetables every 10 days with organic or chemical fertilizers during the fruiting season and water the plants often, especially during hot weather.

5. Sequence multiple crops from your container garden. Start with beans and spinach and early spring. Grow cherry tomatoes, peppers, baby carrots or spring onions in summer, while planting herbs around leafy lettuce. Plant radishes, cress, arugula and spinach in late summer after the tomatoes peak.

Tips & Warnings

• Plant your container garden in a sunny area.

• Water frequently, but don't over water and remember to fertilize.

• Save seeds for next seasons garden.

• Keep plant insecticides away from children and pets.

• Garden tools should be stored in a safe place.

References

• University of Illinois Extension: Successful Container Gardens
• The Ohio State University Extension: Container Vegetable Gardening