Fine Gardening

Posts Tagged ‘Container Vegetable Gardening’

With large backyard gardens becoming a luxury and more and more people catching the fancy of consuming “home-grown” veggies, Container Vegetable Gardening is the talk of the town. However, there are a few things to keep in mind before plunging into Container Vegetable Gardening as a simple hobby or a fine gardening enthusiast.

• Not all vegetables are suitable for Container Vegetable Gardening. This is because some plants have wide spread roots or are huge in size and your container may not be sufficient for the vegetables to grow well. To make your container vegetable gardening experiment a success, it is better to start off with vegetables like tomatoes, carrots, beets, peas, lettuce, cabbage, broccoli and peas. Also, herbs like thyme, basil and rosemary are good choices for container vegetable gardening.

• The container size plays a key role in container vegetable gardening to bear fruit. Since most containers will have to hold potting mix of at least 7-8 inches, it is best to have a container that is at least 8 inches deep and about 12 inches in width. While non-porous containers like plastic and metal can be used, wood containers are considered better as they are semi-porous and can be made durable if pressure treated or lined with plastic. Clay pots are porous too but there is the risk of breakage and damage.

• Drainage is of vital importance in Container Vegetable Gardening. By providing proper drainage holes in containers, your vegetables will not drown due to over-watering. These holes can be made in the bottom of the container.

• Adequate sunlight is an important ingredient in the success of container vegetable gardening. Tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers need a lot of exposure to sun whereas cabbage, parsley and other greens do well under shade. The advantage of container vegetable gardening is one can shift the containers as per the direction of the sun.

• While daily watering is necessary for most container vegetables, over watering may lead to stunted development. To avoid over watering, just insert a stick in the container soil. If there are good traces of soil on the stick, you can skip watering for that day.

• You can also use mulch like compost, leaf mold and straw on top of the soil to avoid loss of moisture. Do not forget to buy a soil-less or soil mix for your container vegetables. You can pick these from any commercial or retail outlets.

• Over watering container vegetables can wash away nutrients. Using a water soluble fertilizer once in a fortnight should do well for the plants.

• For container vegetable gardening to be a success, it is essential to do regular inspection of your plants for any insects or diseases.