Container Vegetable Garden
Grow vegetables in Containers
Container Vegetable Garden
vegetables | grow your ownIt is not necessary to have an allotment or enormous garden in order to satisfy some or all of your yearly vegetable requirements. It is also possible to get some decent yields growing vegetables in containers on your patio or in your back yard. Everyone can get the benefits of home grown organic vegetables even if you live on the 20th floor and only have a window box.
Unless you want to dedicate your life to watering and feeding your crops, choose containers at least 40-50cm in depth which will retain water and nutrients. Also ensure that you use sterile compost (e.g. from a growing bag) so that disease and weeds are less likely to kill your crop. If you use your normal garden compost in containers then any bacteria, fungus, or disease, and any soil pests will take hold. Finally, it is wise to use well rotted manure, or another organic fertiliser in the bottom half of the container so that the roots of your crops will be able to source this added nutrition. Mulching will prevent water loss through evaporation, and prevent weeds growing.
Weekly or fortnightly feeding will also help - do this supplementary feeding after watering so that the food is not just washed out of the bottom of the container and lost.
The following are suggestions of vegetables which will grow well in containers thanks to their compact nature: turnip, beetroot, carrots, potatoes, onions, chard, spring onions, lettuce, dward french beans, and peppers, tomatoes, and aubergines if you have a sheltered south facing hot patio, cucumbers, squash, redishes.
The vegetable seeds to look out for at your local garden centre will likely have bush or patio in their name indicating that the resulting plants will be compact and thrive in compact container growing conditions.
Article Published: 03:37, 20th Apr 2006
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