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Plant a Delicious Vegetable Garden in a Container!

By: Piper Cox

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Can you beat the taste of fresh vegetables from your personal garden? The taste of a recently picked tomato is downright heaven and digging your own new, red potatoes is so gratifying. But what do you do if you don’t have a large yard or no yard at all? Never fear, you can grow great vegetables in containers!

You can grow more than flowers in a container, though that is the first thing people think of when you suggest container gardening. But have you ever experimented putting a few vegetables among the flowers? Consider of the wonderful feast you can have by growing vegetables in your planters. Peppers and small tomatoes grow wonderfully amongst flowers. Their bright fruit is a attractive attraction in the blooms. Garlic and onion plants add pointed foliage to your potted planters, plus garlic will help keep the bugs away!

You can mix your flowers in with the produce, or you can set aside a few just to fruits and vegetables. Strawberries often produce more fruit when planted in a container since they don’t have much area to spread. Strawberry plants spread by putting out runners that root down and start a new plant. When there is no more room for new plants, the strawberries start to develop fruit. Fresh strawberries at any time you want them, what could be better?

You can undoubtedly grow your own vegetables in a container, just stick to these simple steps.

No matter what type of pot you choose, it needs to drain properly. If your pot does not have drainage holes, either drill holes or create a drainage area by adding a layer of gravel at the bottom. If your pot is deep, add styrofoam to the bottom for drainage and to reduce the need for extra soil. This will also make the pot easier to move around. The soil in the planter should be deep enough that the plants will have adequate room for their roots.

Garden soil is not for planters. The soil in your yard is generally too heavy for container use. Potting soil is particularly made with organic and natural material for ideal drainage in planters. By mixing your standard potting soil with peat moss and compost you can produce the perfect container garden mix. Mixing a time release fertilizer into the soil is a good idea. It will feed for about three months and help you raise better produce.

When you are transplanting new plants, dig the hole about twice as large as the plant's root ball. Putting some loose soil back into the hole will give the new plants a soft bed to anchor to. It is very important to knead the roots of the plant before you place it in the hole. If you look closely at a plant fresh from the store container, you will see that the roots are growing in a tight circle. This is because they have been contained and now they need to break free from that growing pattern.

Even though you have added time release fertilizer to the container, you will need to give the plants a vitamin boost when you plant them by using root starter. Mix the liquid fertilizer with water and add it as you plant each new plant to your container. Root starting fertilizers have the proper nutrients that help to prevent transplant shock.

Prune the plant after you plant it. This is something that a lot of gardeners don't like to do. No one wants to trim their lovely new plant. You need to remember that the plant needs to put effort into building a healthy root system. If the plant has blooms on it or is tall and gangly, the plant will put it's energy into preserving those things instead of producing roots. A good rule of thumb is to cut off the plant by two thirds. By cutting it back, the plant will grow back fuller and healthier.

Combine plants with similar requirements. If a plant calls for full sun, don’t pair it up with a plant that does best in partial shade. If you take some time to design your container you will be happier with the results.

Containers are a delicious way to have fresh produce all summer long. Growing your own fresh produce is rewarding and enables you to provide nourishing food for your family. Container gardening is fun and satisfying!

Article Source: http://depositarticles.com/

Piper is a freelance writer who loves working out, good nutrition and the outdoors. She loves to write about subjects like vegetable gardening and exercise. She enjoys going for walks, reading and cooking. She uses a lot of time doing research on great gardening tips and passing the information on to you.

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