How to Garden Vegetables in a Pot
Gardening vegetables in pots is an easy and rewarding way to grow your own vegetables whether you lack garden space or not. With attention to drainage, virtually any type of container can be used. Potted vegetables do require a sufficient amount of care and attention daily to ensure moisture and proper nutrition, though the end result is worth it. Growing your own vegetables ensures that you are eating an organic product free of harmful pesticides and growth hormones. Does this Spark an idea?
Instructions
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1
Choose the vegetable(s) to be planted. There are a variety of vegetables that can be planted in pots, including tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, squash, leaf lettuce, green onions, green beans, radishes, parsley and cucumbers. Pay attention to which varieties you are buying, however, as dwarf varieties (small vegetable sizes) are often a more popular choice to garden inside of a pot as you can fit more into a small space than with the larger varieties. Both seeds and transplants can be grown in pots.
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Germinate the seeds (unless beginning with transplants). Fill a baking pan or shallow plastic tray with potting soil and place the seeds ¼ deep into the soil. Place the germinating tray in a sunny window sill and keep as warm as possible. Germination should take 4-8 weeks depending on the vegetable type.
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3
Choose a container for the transplants. Any variety of container can be used; barrels, wooden boxes, clay pots or plastic pots. Choose your pot based on the type of vegetable being grown; smaller pots for green onions and parsley, and larger ones (such as 5-gallon volume) for tomato- and pepper-sized vegetables.
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Add drainage holes to the containers that lack them. Three to four drainage holes are recommended and should be made along the outer edges of the bottom of the pot. Fill the bottom of the pot with loose gravel to help facilitate drainage.
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Mix together a potting soil or purchase a synthetic soil. The best type of soil mix for a potted vegetable garden is one that contains a variety of lightweight mediums such as peat moss, perlite and vermiculite. Most commercial soils are ready to go, though you can mix your own with equal parts (1 bushel each) vermiculite and peat moss, 10 tbsp. limestone, 5 tbsp. phosphate, and 1 cup fertilizer. Mix together with water and fill the pot 1 to 2 inches from the top. Water thoroughly.
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Plant the transplants (either purchased or germinated from seed) into the prepared pots. Place the pots in an area that receives the most sunlight, and begin a regime of once-daily watering.
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Fertilize each pot daily with a liquid fertilizer made from water and powdered solution. Powdered fertilizer solutions can be found at most garden centers, and each batch lasts for many weeks (1 gallon water per 2 tbsp. powder).
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