Growing Vegetables in Containers (2024)

FAQs

What is the easiest vegetable to grow in a container? ›

Some easy veggies you can grow in pots include cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, and herbs such as basil, mint, thyme, parsley, rosemary, dill, and lemongrass¹.

#1: Container Gardens Need to Be Watered More Often

With such a limited soil volume, plants in containers need frequent watering. It is critical to check your soil weekly to determine hydration levels. Keep an eye open for the following telltale signs: Shriveled, brittle, or dead leaves.

1: Artichoke

Due to similar climate conditions, artichokes work well as perennials in northern California, but may be difficult to grow as perennials in other areas of the nation. Since artichokes like moderate conditions, grow them as annuals in cold winter and hot summer areas.

Pots dry out faster than the ground, so you'll need to water containers daily especially in hot weather.

Soil substitutes consisting of mixtures of peat moss and sand or perlite or vermiculite, amended with lime and fertilizer, work very well. One good recipe includes 1 bushel each of vermiculite and peat moss, 1¼ cups of dolomitic lime, ½ cup 20% superphosphate and 1 cup 5-10-5 fertilizer.

12" to 18" for moderate depth vegetables: eggplant, peppers, beets, broccoli, carrots (short varieties), cauliflower, celery, chard, kale, peas. 18" to 24" for deep rooted vegetables: tomatoes, potatoes, zucchini, winter squashes, beans, corn, cucumbers.

One of the most popular companion plantings is “The Three Sisters Garden,” which includes corn, beans and squash. Taller plants, such as corn, can provide a natural support trellis and shelter for beans, peas and other climbing crops.

Can you plant peppers next to tomatoes in pots? ›

Nightshades: While tomatoes can be good companion plants for peppers, other nightshades such as potatoes and eggplants are not. They require similar nutrients from the soil and can attract pests such as potato beetles and flea beetles.

A rule of thumb is to plant something which will be happy for at least the next two or three years. Then you can transplant it to a larger pot, root-prune it and attempt to grow it in a dwarfed form, or plant it out in the garden.

Using good potting soil is a simple way to get your outdoor container gardens off to a great start. Quality potting soil will help your container plants thrive.

No matter. Most vegetables grow just as well in containers as in the ground—sometimes better. Decks, patios, driveways, balconies, window boxes and even rooftops are all candidates as veggie-growing sites. All you need is a half-day or more of sunlight and enough effort to keep your pots watered and fertilized.

Radishes are one of the fastest crops you can grow—it takes the vegetable about six weeks to grow from seed to harvest. On Martha's farm in New York, April is the standard month to plant radishes, as they can handle cold but not heavy frost.

Container-grown vegetables are best fed by mixing compost and a balanced organic fertilizer into the potting mix each time you replant, followed by a liquid fertilizer regimen when roots have begun to fill the container.