Have you ever thought about starting a garden to try your hand at growing food, but don’t have the inclination to dig up a corner of your yard to try it out? Or maybe you live in a condo or townhouse, where it’s impossible to have that kind of space? Gardening doesn’t have to be the exclusive domain of those with lots of outdoor space at their disposal – almost anything can be successfully grown in containers if you provide your plants with love and care. Growing your own food is the ultimate in eating locally, and it’s a great lesson for the kids too, to learn where food comes from and how it grows. Here are a few tips for growing some edibles in your yard or on your balcony this spring:
1. Plan, plan, plan. Know your growing season, what direction your light comes from, and decide what size planters you can place and where. You can always move them later, but it’s good to have an idea of where you want things to be. Research what kinds of things you want to grow, and what their requirements are. Think about if you want to start your plants from seed, or buy seedlings from your local nursery.
2. Choose your containers carefully. Plastic is great for starting out – it’s cheap and light and easy to move around. But it doesn’t last forever, after a couple of seasons it will likely be deteriorating from sun exposure. Terra-cotta and ceramic planters are pretty and long-lasting, but heavy. If you want to use salvaged containers like buckets or old pots, make sure you drill drainage holes.
3. Pick a good potting soil. Garden soil may not be ideal, so talk with someone at your local nursery about a good potting mix. Most nurseries and garden centers will have the perfect soil for container gardening.
4. Fertilize! Fertilizing is especially important for container gardens. You are packing a lot of plants into a small amount of soil, so mix in an organic fertilizer when planting, and supplement with regular feedings.
5. Water often. Container gardens dry out faster than their yard-grown counterparts. Be careful not to over-do it, the soil should be moist but not water-logged. Depending on your climate, you may need to water daily, or you could get away with every other day (or less, if you get lots of rain!)
6. Plant different things together. Different plants pull different nutrients from the soil, so you can get more bang for your container buck by planning to grow different things in the same pot.
(Image Source: Richard Masoner)
As the only grownup in the house, I can’t commit to the labour involved in keeping a “real” garden (tweens are not very reliable labourers), so I started container gardening last summer. It went so well with my strawberries, blueberries and tomatoes that I’m planning to add a few more species this summer. And I love that when the hail starts to fall, you can move your tomatoes inside!