Container Vegetable Gardening

Healthy Harvests from Small SpacesAdapted from Balto. Co. Presentation

Kent Phillips, Howard County MGKent.a.phillips@gmail.com

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Resources

• Grow it! Eat it!- www.extension.umd.edu/growit– Search for classes and events– Links to

• Youtube video presentations• Blog• Facebook and Twitter

• Home and Garden Information Center-www.extension.umd.edu/hgic

• Links to great fact sheets and publications– Can answer your personal gardening questions…– Call the “hotline” Mon-Fri, 8am-1pm. 1.800.342.2507– Send an e-mail question 24/7 through the web site.

Container Vegetable Gardening

IntroductionWhy Container Gardening?

• No land• HOA hassles• Easy to get started • Close to the kitchen• Deer are not a problem

Growing Advantages

• Perfect for everybody• No digging or tilling• Weed free• Inexpensive to start up• Overcomes some common garden

complaints• Container location• Plant protection• Season extension

Getting Started• A little bit of room

• Sunlight

• Containers

• Growing medium

• Water

• Nutrients

• Tender loving care

Container Location• 8-10 hrs. sun for fruiting crops

• 6 hrs. sun for cool season crops

• Access to water - smaller containers will need water every day

• Placed on any level space

• Be careful of microclimates

• The water that drains from containers can stain concrete and wood decking

• Large containers are heavy• 20-inch container = 100 pounds

Container Types• Plastic• Wood• Clay• Free • Recycled• Practical• Expensive• Commercially produced

Self-Watering Containers• “Self-watering” containers are a relatively new

gardening concept. Instead of drainage holes in the bottom, these containers have an overflow hole on one side. The growing medium sits on a perforated platform directly above a water reservoir. In most cases, water is wicked up from the reservoir into the medium.

• Self-watering containers conserve water and nutrients

• Commercial self-watering containers can be expensive

• You can make your own. Search GIEI website for containers

Self-Watering Containers

Self-Watering 5 Gallon Bucket

Homemade Salad Table™• The Salad Table™ HGIC pub 601 • Great for growing shallow rooted

plants• Legs of any length, set it on saw

horses or put wheels on it for mobility

• Comfortable waist level gardening• Three compartments for succession

gardening• Build it deeper for plants like beans,

beets, kale

What’s the “Dirt” on Growing Media?

• Supports plant’s root system

• Supplies nutrients• Permits drainage• Needs to be light and fluffy

Growing Media

Garden Soil • Heavy• Bring in weed seeds and soil diseases• Doesn’t drain well in containers

Commercial Soil-Less Mixes• Excellent

• Lightweight• Drains well• Holds water and nutrients• Proper pH

• Examples of soil-less mixes are: ProMix™, ReddiEarth™, Jiffy Mix™, and Sunshine Mix™

Stay Away From• Top soil• Planting soil• Planting mix• Potting soil• Mixes

• containing sedge peat, wood mulch or bark fines

• that are heavy or gritty• have very fine particles

Adding Compost to Media• Highly recommended• Adds additional slow release nutrients• Increases water and nutrient holding

capacity of media• May have to add perlite to lighten mix

• If you don’t have compost, LeafGro™ is the next best commercially available product.

Compost• Compost contains all the major and minor nutrients that plants

need for good growth. This makes it an excellent substitute for sphagnum peat moss, which has very few nutrients (although it does hold water better than compost).

• Composting effectively recycles the nutrients from gardens, landscapes, and farms, thereby reducing nutrient pollution of waterways. However, fertilizing is still necessary because the nutrients in compost are released slowly and are usually not sufficient for an entire season.

• Vegetables, herbs and flower plants can be successfully grown in 100% compost or leaf mold. They have particles of various sizes which causes them to drain well.

Media MixturesSome good media mixtures for container vegetables are:

• 90% compost or LeafGro + 10% perlite

• 100% soil-less mix

• 50% soil-less mix + 50% compost

Happy Roots

• Watering needs vary depending on• container size• ambient temperature• wind• sunlight• humidity• type of plant and its size

• Media in container should be kept moist at all times but not soggy

• Most containers will need to be watered daily in the summer

• Use a water breaker or watering can for soft flow

Fertilizers• Containers require regular fertilization• Water soluble fertilizers• Good rule of thumb is every two weeks

for water soluble fertilizers• Immediately available to plants• Organic varieties are ready available

• How much and how often depends• Slow-release fertilizer

• Inorganic such as Osmocote• Organic – blood meal, worm castings,

etc.• Always follow label instructions• Excess fertilizer can harm and stunt plants

What Can I Grow• Just about any vegetable or

herb!• Popular, easy container crops:

salad greens, peppers, eggplant, tomatoes, beans, chard, beets, radish, squash and cucumbers.

• More challenging crops include melons, corn, potatoes, and sweet potatoes.

• Look for “bush” or “dwarf” varieties , esp. tomatoes, cucumbers, squash.

• The key is to experiment.

Container Depth Matters

• Match container depth to plant size

• 4-6 inches: greens, small herbs• 8-12 inches: beans, beets, large

herbs• 1-3 gallons: green onions, chard• 4-5 gallons: cucumber, eggplant,

beans, broccoli, patio tomato, pepper

• 15 gallon full size tomato

Planting Time

• No pebbles, gravel, or rocks unless you need the weight to prevent tipping.

• Cover drainage holes with fiberglass screen or other material

• Thoroughly work water into the growing medium• Fill container to inch or so of top of container.• Don’t compact media• Follow seed packet directions for planting, spacing, and

care.• Plant seedlings (except tomatoes) at same level as they

were growing in pot or six-pack. • Tomatoes can be planted deeper, for stronger root

growth.

Make Attractive Containers

• Mix herbs and annual flowers in with the vegetable plants.

• Herbs such as lavender, thyme, oregano, marjoram, and chives require a loose growing medium, and dry conditions.

• Keep containers together to increase humidity and water retention

Keep those plants growing!• Succession plant – spring - lettuce or

spinach, summer - pepper , beans or cucumbers fall -kale, lettuce or broccoli raab to finish out the season. Don’t forget to continue to fertilize each crop!

• Trellis tall or climbing plants• indeterminate tomatoes• pole beans• cucumbers

• Move plants around if containers are portable to maximize sunlight (for heat-loving crops) and shade (for summer-grown salad greens).

Planting & Care

• Container grown plants are subject to the same insect and disease problems as garden grown plants, but container gardeners tend to have fewer soil related problems.

• The biggest causes of plant problems are lack of water and nutrients, and overcrowding. Plants can also suffer root rot from too much water, especially if the growing mix does not drain well.

• Go to plantdiagnostics.umd.edu for additional help in diagnosing vegetable problems.

Diagnosing Plant Problems

Season’s End• Compost the plant and soil from the pot. • Do not reuse the same soil for a second season

– Infected soil or mix will spread disease into the second season unless it is properly composted

– Properly composted planting media can be reused.• Store pots to prevent freeze damage

Container Gardening ResourcesRelated MCE Fact Sheetswww.extension.umd.edu/hgic - Click on “Information Library” tab, click on “Publications” tab and click on “Vegetables, Fruit and Herb Gardening”HG #16- Planting Dates for Vegetable Crops in MarylandHG #70- Recommended Vegetable Cultivars for Maryland Home GardensHG #42- Soil Amendments and Fertilizers BooksHG#600- Container Vegetable GardeningHG#601- Grow Your Own Greens with Salad Tables™ & Salad Boxes™

Books“The Edible Container Garden”- Michael Guerra; 2000; Fireside; 159 pp.

“The Bountiful Container”- Rose Marie Nichols McGee and Maggie Stuckey; 2002; Workman Publishing Co., Inc.; 432 pp.

“Container Gardening for Dummies”- Bill Marken; 1998; IDG Books; 334 pp.

“The Contained Garden”- Kenneth Beckett, David Carr, and David Stevens; 1992; Penguin Books; 168 pp.

“Movable Harvests”- Chuck Crandall & Barbara Crandall; 1995; Chapters Publishing; 128 pp.

“Incredible Vegetables from Self-Watering Containers”, 2006; Edwin C. Smith; Storey Pub.; 254 pp.

Container Gardening ResourcesWebsitesContainer Gardens: The City Dwellers Guide to Fresh and Healthy Home Grown Food – www.arts4all.com/elca (interesting plans for wading pool gardens)

The Growing Connection - www.thegrowingconnection.orgA world youth gardening program run by the Food and Agricultural Organization of the UN that uses the EarthBox.

SuppliesHome Harvest Garden Supply Inc. - www.homeharvest.com

Windowbox.com - www.windowbox.com

Gardener’s Supply Company - www.gardeners.com

EarthBox™ - www.earthbox.com

Seeds for container gardening- www.containerseeds.com

DripWorks - www.dripworksusa.com

Resources• Home and Garden Information Center (HGIC)

– 800-342-2507– www.extension.umd.edu/hgic

• Grow It Eat It website– www.extension.umd.edu/growit

• Master Gardener state website– www.extension.umd.edu/mg

This program was developed Maryland Master Gardener Program University of Maryland Extension Baltimore County

and modified for this presentation by

Kent Phillips