Containers

The type and size of containers to use depends on what type of plants you will grow in it. All types of traditional planting pots and boxes are available at garden centers, but be creative with containers you may already have hanging around. Wooden boxes, large plastic totes, and old coolers (minus the lid) all work as long as they have adequate drainage.

It’s best to add about an inch of gravel to the bottom of planting containers to make sure water can drain out. Some varieties of tomatoes and herbs can even be grown in hanging baskets to make good use of a small space.

Soil, Fertilizer, and Watering

A pre-mixed bagged soil is your best bet for container gardening. On such a small scale it is easier to purchase soil with the correct combination of nutrients and organic matter than to try and mix your own. This type of soil can be purchased at your local garden center. Remember, plants in containers need to be watered more frequently than those in the ground.

What to Plant

Depending on the type, plants can be started from seeds or purchased as seedlings (probably your best bet if you are a beginner). Radishes and lettuce grow pretty quickly and easily from seeds, but vegetables such as tomatoes and peppers need more time before producing a crop so are best purchased as started plants.

There are many varieties of vegetables that are well-suited to container gardening. Be sure to ask at your garden center, because they will probably have different varieties available.

• Tomatoes- Patio, Red Cherry, Yellow Pear, Tiny Tim
• Lettuce- most varieties work well
• Green Beans- Topcrop, Blue Lake
• Radishes- most varieties work well
• Cucumbers- Salad Bush, Spacemaster, Burpless
• Squash- Yellow Crookneck
• Eggplant- Dusky, Black Beauty
• Peppers- Jalapeno, Lady Bell, Gypsy
• Don’t forget you can also grow most herbs in containers, as well as strawberries and edible flowers!

Container Vegetable Gardening Resources

If you would like more information on container gardening, there are many sources where you can find it.Google “container gardening” and you will come up with just shy of a million hits. I found this website particularly thorough and informative when I was first starting out: http://ohioline.osu.edu/hyg-fact/1000/1647.html

There are also several books written on this subject, or try your local Cooperative Extension office—they are always helpful and can give advice specific to your region’s climate and soil structure. Remember, a certain amount of any type of gardening is learned by trial and error—good luck!