Container Vegetable Gardening: Tips for Successful Gardening in Limited Space

Container Vegetable Gardening: Tips for Successful Gardening in Limited Space

Article by Ryan Thomas

Have you heard the buzz about container vegetable gardening? It’s all the rage in some circles these days. But why?

There are many reasons to use vegetable gardening planters, also known as container gardening. Perhaps you live in an apartment or condominium. Or maybe you rent a house where your landlord will not allow you to have a garden. Whatever the reason may be, you can still grow a substantial amount of food in containers.

You can use pretty much any containers that will hold soil. The important considerations are essentially the same as in a traditional garden. You need proper drainage and plenty of sunlight. The drainage can be accomplished by drilling some small holes in the bottoms of your planters. Another major consideration is the size of containers you choose. Some of the larger plants like tomatoes and peppers need containers that hold at least three gallons of soil. Many smaller plants can do fine with much less.

As far as soil goes, you probably want to use a lighter mix than normal, and one that holds moisture better. Peat moss is the answer to both of these criteria. You can use that, along with soil and compost to make a wonderful potting mix. As an aside, if you don’t foresee needing to move the plants during the season, you don’t need the soil to be quite as light, in which case you can use more soil and less peat moss.

Finally, proper watering is critical. Since your plants will sit in a limited amount of soil, they require more precise control of the moisture level. You’ll probably need to water them occasionally, more often than ground-grown plants. But you shouldn’t water them so much as to always keep the soil wet.

Well, I hope these introductory tips are helpful to you. Good luck in all your gardening adventures.

About the Author

Ryan Thomas has been growing vegetables for over twenty years. He is the owner of Vegetable Gardening Guidebook, a website providing free tips and tricks for successful vegetable gardening. For more information, check out the Vegetable Gardening Planters page on my website.