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Business & Tech

Limited Space Doesn't Mean You Can't Garden

Container gardens can be a simple and easy solution for flower, herb, and vegetable growing.

Whether you live in an apartment, a condominium or a house with a small yard, you can still grow your favorite flowers, herbs and vegetables in containers of all shapes and sizes.

“Container gardening is really popular today as more and more people are staying home and want to enjoy their space,” said Jean Harkey, manager of Teson Farms, a Brentwood garden center. “People have containers in their entryways, patios, porches and decks for their gardens.” 

This is a great time to start thinking about building a container garden because the chance of a freeze is unlikely after mid-April, Harkey said. Container gardens can be built using seeds or plants, but of course plants give people a little jump on having fresh flowers and vegetables a little sooner.

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“Flowering container gardens are still the most popular gardens, but we are seeing more interest in vegetables as grocery prices rise,” she added.

There are basic tips people should keep in mind when they get ready to create any type of container garden, Harkey said.

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Getting started

• Container Size — Use a large pot or container at least 14 inches or larger because plants need a place for their roots to grow. Containers can include flowerpots, large bowls, hanging baskets, window boxes, or any other creative container you can find.

• Drainage — A container needs drainage holes. Rocks at the bottom of a container do not provide adequate drainage.

• Soil — Use a lightweight or blend potting soil and leave about 2 inches of room at the top of the container.

• Compost — Vegetable container gardens can benefit from the addition of compost you can make at home.

• Fertilizer — Popular fertilizers include Osmocote or Miracle-Gro and can be found in an encapsulated slow-release product. Organic options are also growing in popularity. Teson Farms now offers worm casings (worm waste), a fertilizer it gets from a local worm farm. Harkey also recommends a compost tea that is made by filling a coffee can one-third full with “cooked compost” from your compost bin, adding water, and letting it “cook for a couple days in the sun.” After it has steeped like tea, strain off the compost, which can go back in your bin, and use the water as an organic fertilizer. 

Building your garden

• Have a good understanding of the area where your container garden will be on display and whether it will work best with sun or shade plants. Vegetables and herbs typically require a sunny area, while some flowers do much better in shade.

• Choose an odd number of plants, select different textures, and create a color palette that is pleasing to the eye.

• Flowering container gardens work well with three types of plants:

–      Uprights for the center, such as dracaena spikes, geraniums, or hibiscus.

–      Fillers around the center, such as euphorbia or million bells flowers.

–      Trailers such as sweet potato vine, asparagus fern, or vinca vines.

• Vegetable container gardens often do best with one type of plant and can require a stake, trellis, or obelisk to support vines such as tomatoes, beans, sugar snap peas, peppers, squash, and cucumbers. Tomatoes and peppers could work together if needed. Lettuce is another vegetable that does well in container gardens.

• Herb container gardens can accommodate several types of herbs. Typically plant these 3 to 4 inches apart to allow for growth.

Maintaining your garden

• Container gardens require consistent watering and periodic fertilizing if you don’t use an extended-release fertilizer.

• Regular deadheading — the removal of dead or spent flowers — will induce more blooming.

• For vegetables, such as cucumbers, zucchini, or green beans, pick regularly to ensure re-growth. Lettuce should be cut back before bolting (flowering) to help it reproduce. Sugar snap peas don’t do well once it gets too hot, while some varieties of tomatoes can tolerate the heat.

“Container gardens can be a lot of fun to make and are a great place for a new gardener to start,” Harkey said. “You can use your creativity and decorate with flowers or plants.”

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