May 10 Column: Grow Vegetables in Containers

vegetables in containers
vegetables in containers

This week’s garden column is about growing vegetables in containers. Even if you don’t have an actual spot for a garden, or have no yard at all, you can still grow veggies. The solution? Plant them in pots! Here’s a link to my column in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Expand your harvest options with container gardening. (or you can read my column near the bottom of this post)

One thing I didn’t have room to include in my column was a rough guideline for choosing the size of container for specific types of vegetables, so here it is:

For large vegetables such as artichokes, potatoes, pumpkins, summer squash, tomatoes, choose 5- to 10-gallon pots.

For medium-sized vegetables such as broccoli, cabbage, cucumbers, eggplants, peppers, go with 5-gallon pots.

And for small-rooted veggies like lettuce, radishes, spinach, Swiss card, choose 1- to 2-gallon pots.

Also, here is a list of vegetables that do best when started from seeds sown directly into the pots: beans, carrots, kale, lettuce, peas, radishes and Swiss chard.

OK, I hope this information will help and also inspire you. And even if you DO have a conventional vegetable garden, why not expand it a bit by planting a few veggies in pots? They look cool and will give you an even bigger harvest!

This year, we’re growing all of our potatoes in cloth grow bags and a couple of large pots. Also, I received some unexpected plants in the mail a few days ago, courtesy of All-America Selections. This included a few pepper and tomato plants, so we’re going to grow them in big pots, too. What fun!

In this week’s “Everyone Can Grow a Garden” video, I finally planted my “gutter peas.” Hooray! Ordinarily, I would have planted them sooner but I was waiting for them to develop a mat of roots so I could easily shake them out of the gutters. Take a look:

Now, if you missed seeing my original gutter pea video, here it is again (whoops! I just discovered that I used the same photo for both videos! But the video below is the one I shot in 2018, honest!):

Grow vegetables in containers garden column:

by Susan Mulvihill

You don’t need a garden plot to grow fresh produce. Planting vegetables and herbs in containers is an excellent alternative to conventional gardens. By finding the sunniest location available — such as on a balcony, patio or your front steps — you will be successful.

The nice thing about container gardening is that you can easily control the soil conditions and, should any pest problems arise, it’s easier to deal with them on a smaller scale.

Remember that vegetable plants perform best if they receive a minimum of six hours of sunlight daily. That can be a challenge in some circumstances. I’ve heard of folks outfitting the bottoms of their pots with casters so they can move them into the sunshine throughout the growing season.

Containers are available in many types of materials such as terracotta, plastic, wood or metal. Cloth “grow bags” are also ideal. While gardeners mostly use grow bags for potatoes, other crops will flourish in them as well. Keep in mind that root crops such as carrots and parsnips require deeper containers.

It’s important to remember that the soil in containers will dry out faster than the soil in a garden. Larger containers will retain moisture longer than smaller ones. Many garden centers sell self-watering containers that have a water reservoir beneath the growing area. The soil wicks the water up to the roots, providing plants with consistently moist soil. These pots are particularly ideal if you need to leave town for a few days.

No matter which type of container you choose, make sure it has drainage holes in the bottom. Plants will decline rapidly if their roots are in water-logged soil.

Avoid filling pots with garden soil as it is heavy, can compact easily, and might contain weed seeds or disease pathogens. Use fresh organic potting soil instead and fill the container to two inches below the lip; that will keep it from spilling over the edge each time you water. Feed your plants with an organic vegetable fertilizer to provide them with the nutrients they need in order to produce a crop — whether it’s leaves, roots or fruits.

When choosing vegetables to grow, keep an eye out for compact ones that are ideally suited for this type of gardening. Look for dwarf or bush types of vegetables rather than tall plants or those that develop vines. For example, instead of choosing pole beans, which require vertical supports, consider growing bush beans because they are much more compact. If you have your heart set on growing pole beans, it’s still possible to plant them in containers provided you give them stakes or a trellis to climb. Find suggested cultivars (varieties) in the information box.

Monitor your plants on a regular basis in case any problems crop up and enjoy your delicious harvest. At the end of the season, empty the containers and scrub them so they are clean and ready to use next year.

Vegetables for Containers:

  • Artichoke: Green Globe, Imperial.
  • Beans, bush: French Mascotte, Provider, Topcrop.
  • Beets: Baby Ball, Cylindra.
  • Broccoli: Green Comet, Munchkin.
  • Cabbage: Babette, Caraflex, Little Jade, Pixie.
  • Carrots: Danvers Half Long, Gold Nugget, Little Finger.
  • Cucumber: Bush Baby, Spacemaster.
  • Eggplant: Little Prince, Patio Baby.
  • Kale: Dwarf Blue Curled, Dwarf Siberian.
  • Lettuce and spinach: All cultivars.
  • Peas: Little Marvel, Patio Pride.
  • Peppers: All cultivars.
  • Pumpkins: Mini Jack, Jack Be Little.
  • Squash, summer: Astia, Bush Baby, Patio Star.
  • Swiss chard: Bright Lights, Pot of Gold.
  • Tomatoes: Better Bush, Garden Gem, Minibel, Patio, Stupice, Tiny Tim, Tumbler.