Many people that I have spoken with in urban areas are under the impression that they can only grow herbs in a kitchen window!  You don’t need a large plot of land to grow fresh vegetables. I have grown many vegetables in containers.  We also have made some space for planting in the ground, but I’ll get to that later.  With a little extra care, many vegetables thrive in containers located in a sunny spot on a step, porch, window box, etc.  I’ll provide some ideas in selecting bush or dwarf veggie varieties, but almost any vegetable can be adapted to growing in a pot. Lettuce, root veggies, or crops that bear fruits over a long period of time, such as tomatoes and sweet or hot peppers, are perfect for container vegetable gardens.

Containers and Pots for Vegetable Gardens

Selecting Containers: Containers for your vegetable gardens can be almost anything: flower pots, pails, buckets, wire baskets, bushel baskets, wooden boxes, nursery flats, window planters, washtubs,  large food cans.  I recently visited a nursery here in California that was willing to get rid of plastic planters that trees and bushes arrived in.  These are perfect because they are large enough, and have drainage. 

Drainage: Any container that you choose should have holes at the base or in the bottom to permit drainage of excess water.   If you place containers on your wooden deck, you should raise them on a brick or something similar so that you don’t get permanent “ring stains” on your deck…If you care about that.   Some gardeners swear by using only terra cotta planters however can be expensive.    If you are using plastic or terra cotta containers, I suggest watering in the morning hours to give the soil a chance to dry out before the evening.  Otherwise, you may get moldy roots, or other plant diseases that we will discuss in another post.

Size: Container size is important. For larger vegetables like tomatoes and eggplants, you should use a five gallon container for each plant.  If you plant in containers that are too small, you run the risk of the roots getting too big for the planter, and your plant will need to be repotted.   Replanting a 3’-4’ tomato plant would really be difficult!  

Soil and Fertilizer

You can use soil in your container vegetable garden, but the synthetic mixes are much better. Peat-based mixes, containing peat and vermiculite, are excellent. They are relatively sterile and pH adjusted. They also allow the plants to get enough air and water.  I mix one-part mushroom compost to two parts planting mix will improve fertility.

Using a slow release or complete organic fertilizer at planting will keep your vegetables fed for the whole growing season.  My favorite is “Tomato Tone”.    It is organic, and has worked for me every year.