Container Gardening Fun with Veggies

Vegetable gardening is the #1 pastime in the United States and has been so for decades. For those who are space challenged, gardening in containers is a fun and rewarding solution. If you only have a small patio, balcony, or porch that gets a minimum of 8 hours of sun a day, you can be growing your own vegetables. It can also be a solution for those who have the room, but in their own situation, seem to be gardening for the sole purpose of feeding subterranean denizens like gophers and moles.

Container Size

Size of the container, particularly the depth, is a crucial factor to consider. Know what you are growing. Smaller veggies like lettuce, radishes, leafy greens and strawberries don't require the soil depth needed by tomatoes, peppers, squash, eggplant or cucumbers. As a rule of thumb, for the smaller more shallow rooted plants use a minimum container depth of 12", and for the larger varieties 18"-24" deep.

Set Up and Care

All of that said, the shape of the container is what best suits your space allocations or aesthetic pleasures. Oak half barrels or wooden containers in square or rectangle shapes that can be purchased at nearly any garden or home improvement center are typical favorites. Be sure they have several drain holes in the bottom and cover them with a piece of fine mesh or window screen to keep the soil in and let the water out. Nearly all vegetables benefit from a good deep watering and allow the soil to become dry down a few inches before watering again. While good garden soil is "good in the garden", it doesn't lend itself well to being used in containers and can become hard and compacted. Use a good commercial potting mix as a growing medium. They are typically rich in nutrients and have good drainage characteristics. Likewise, there are fertilizers available specifically for the home vegetable garden. Follow the instructions of the manufacturer for proper application.

Here's the Fun Part!

Ethnic, seasonal and regional cooking is all the rage these days. Plant some containers with the veggies you like in general, but make some container specific gardens for your special cuisines. Remember that the plants will get larger and need some room. Don't crowd too many in together. See the Italian style for a general set of rules and parameters and then just change the plants to suit your tour of the globe!

For Example:

Italian — Try a Tomato of your choice, an Eggplant and a few Radicchio in one of those half barrels. Be sure to stake or trellis plants like Tomatoes to do "vertical gardening" allowing as much of the soil surface to be available for the other plants. Leave out the Radicchio and plant a Zucchini, Bell Pepper, Pepperoncini, or Arugula instead. You can designate a specific container next to your veggies just for the complimentary herbs; veggies in one container (or more) and a side container including Italian Parsley, Oregano, and Basil. If you are using one of those long, rectangle planters then you can obviously put in a couple of Tomatoes or Eggplants. Use your creativity and common sense to design your containers. Now that you have the idea, start your global tour with these combos, and check out our Herb Site for complimentary Herb Containers!

Global and Regional Culinary Combos

Asian — Japanese Eggplant, Chinese Cucumber, Sugar Lace Peas, Broccoli, Thai Chile Pepper, Chile de Arbol Pepper, Bell Pepper, Cabbage.

Greek and Middle East — Tomato, Eggplant, Cucumber, Shallots, Garlic, Onions.

Mexican / Southwest — Poblano, Anaheim, and Jalapeno peppers, Summer Squash, Tomatoes, Tomatillo, Garlic, Onions.

Cajun — Bell Pepper, Celery, Onion (the "Trinity" of Cajun cuisine), Cayenne and Tabasco peppers, Tomatoes, Summer Squash, Garlic.

Caribbean — Habanero Pepper, Chile de Arbol Pepper, Bell Pepper, Tomato, Onion, Squash, Cucumber, Garlic.

The "Pickle Barrel" — Pickling Cucumbers, Garlic and Dill.

The "Hot Pickle Barrel — Pickling Cucumbers, Cauliflower, Hungarian Hot Pepper, Pepperoncini, Chile de Arbol Pepper, Onions, Garlic and Dill.

Winter Pickings — Cabbages (Red and Green), Cauliflower, Brussel Sprouts, Broccoli, Swiss Chard.

Summer Salad Bowl — Cherry Tomato, Head Lettuce, Leaf Lettuce, Mesclun Mix, Arugula.

Gringo Salsa Garden — Anaheim Peppers, Tomatoes, Onions, Cilantro.

Authentic Salsa Garden — Jalapeno Peppers, Poblano Peppers, Tomatillos, Tomatoes, Onions, Garlic, Cilantro.

Some Extra Tips

Certain vegetables like corn are maybe not the best choice for a container - too tall, and usually need to be planted in fairly large blocks to insure fertilization and a good harvest. Still, it has been done so give it a try.

While plants like tomatoes, cucumbers, and squash can be grown up on a trellis above the container to provide more useable container space, they can be allowed to cascade out of the container as well if you have the space and want a different look.

Larger fruits like cantaloupes and watermelons can be grown in containers but are not practical to trellis so be sure you have room around the container to let them sprawl.