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Creating my list of veggies that I could grow and eat this fall really put me in the gardening mood. It also doesn’t help that my mother back in Hawaii has started her own plot in a community garden. Since I live in an apartment, I don’t have access to my own yard. This makes growing veggies a little more difficult, but not impossible. While I have signed up on a waiting list for a community garden near me (hopefully I’ll get a plot soon), I’ve decided the next best thing I can do is container gardening.
My mom working on her community garden
[Image Source: My dad]
But what is container gardening? It is the practice of growing plants exclusively in containers, not rooting them in the ground. This can be done using virtually any container; pots, basket, barrels, tubs, bucket, even tin cans! While I plan on using a smaller container to grow my veggies (right now I’m thinking starting with spinach) I also need to make sure that I follow proper steps.
[image source: https://celebrateurbanbirds.org/learn/gardening/container-gardening/ ]
Several advantages to having a container plant is you have full control over the quality of soil you put into it. Perfect for people who are limited in space (such as myself without a yard). You also have better control over temperature, water, and amount of sun your plants get.
[Image source: https://blog.cheaperthandirt.com/container-gardening-urban-preppers-growing-food-virtually/ ]
Next you want to do a little bit a research on the container size vs the plant you want to grow. For instant my spinach can grow in almost any size container and doesn’t even need to be planted alone. It does need to be water frequently as it needs consistent moisture. Research on your container should include ideal size, drainage holes, moisture holding ability and location of where you will place it.
[Image source: http://balconygardenweb.com/how-to-grow-spinach-in-pots-growing-spinach-in-containers-care/]
Now that you have your container picked out, it’s time to add the soil. https://www.gardeners.com/how-to/soil-calculator/7558.html has a handy soil Calculator that calculates the amount of soil that you will need per container size. It is best to combine topsoil along with compost. While I have seen many people have different options on the percentage of compost to topsoil, many gardeners recommend about 30% compost.
[Image source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRxAI9mWdIE] :
Some other items that you can use to boost your plants growth are garden boosters. A good example of this is worm casting (or worm poop) as it is great for plants because of the added nitrogen. Depending on where you’re storing your container, worm casting can also attract worms, which are good for any garden. Other good boosters include fungal compost, rock dust, and compost tea. Avoid anything synthetic as that can dry out your container and eat up important nutrients for your plants.
[Image Source: https://thisismygarden.com/2018/02/worm-castings-fertilizer/]
Last step in setting your contain pot, is to plant your plant. Whether it is seed, stem, or other variant, make sure to research how deep, how much water, and how much sun is needed. Being in a container makes it very easy to move around, and also place in area away from possible household pets(I’m looking at you boomer, the house plant eater! RIP my succulent plants). Water as needed and move in sunlight as needed.
[Image Source: https://www.hgtv.com/outdoors/flowers-and-plants/houseplants/7-plants-to-grow-for-cats]
Do you plan on doing any container gardening? Do you have any tips for a first time container gardener? Think there is something else I should grow besides spinach? Please let me know in the comment section below?
https://www.maximumyield.com/definition/1715/container-gardening
https://www.planetnatural.com/raised-bed-soil/
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Container_garden
https://www.weedemandreap.com/best-soil-combination-raised-garden-boxes/
https://blog.cheaperthandirt.com/container-gardening-urban-preppers-growing-food-virtually/
