Container gardening is a common practice among urban gardeners, aka those who do not have a backyard, or a backyard with grass. It’s also popular among gardeners who simply want to grow extra food, flowers, and herbs and either don’t have the space to accommodate another full garden, or don’t want to. Since knowing how to grow your own food is an excellent survival skill, check out a few container gardening tips to get you started:
Sunlight
Think about container placement in terms of sunlight. Research how much light each plant or vegetable you intend to grow requires. For example, partial sun plants require four to six hours of sunlight per day.
Pot Selection
Planters are available in a variety of forms, including terra cotta, wood, plastic, and ceramic. The type of planter isn’t as important as the size, as every plant simply wants enough room to spread its roots. It’s also important to ensure each pot features adequate drainage holes. Use a screwdriver and a hammer to add additional holes as needed.
The Right Soil
Quality potting soil is what you want, not soil from your backyard garden, if applicable. Garden soil will dry into a hard mass, which certainly won’t help you, so choose a potting soil variety featuring healthy amounts of peat moss, perlite, vermiculite, and/or rotted manure. Some options have slow-release fertilizer mixed in, so read the bag well to ensure you’re getting what you want.
Watering
Container garden plants require more frequent gardening than their regular-garden counterparts, so keep a watchful eye on all plants and water them any time soil feels dry. It’s also recommended that you water thoroughly for the first two weeks until plants are established.
Fertilizer
As with watering, container garden plants require more fertilizing. However, whatever fertilizer you select, such as an organic option, requires diluting before applying it to each plant.
Have you ever tried container gardening? What was your success rate? Share your tips and stories in the comments section!