Want a garden but don’t have much yard space? Try your hand at container or small-space gardening! Many vegetables grow well in small spaces, provided you give them what they need: good soil, adequate watering, and sunshine. And there are many beautiful combinations of vegetables, herbs, and flowers that provide texture, color, interest, and nutrition that can take the place of an ordinary flowerpot.
Try These Combinations:
- Alyssum (for the pollinators!), parsley, and Moroccan mint
- Nasturtium and rainbow chard
- Collards and Red Leaf lettuce
- African Blue basil and Lemon Gem marigold
- Malabar spinach, Golden Lemon thyme, and Thai Kermit eggplant
Vegetables That Grow Well in Containers:
- Any herbs, lettuces, or greens
- Eggplants and most peppers
- Some cucumbers, like the Patio Snacker variety
- Some tomatoes: Tidy Treats, Micro Tom
- Caserta zucchini
- Potatoes, if you are growing them in a larger container
- Peas and pole beans
Most vegetables and flowering plants require sunshine to produce their fruit. If you do not have a space to grow in full sun, try growing greens such as kale, collards, and lettuce. Even some herbs do well in lower light conditions. Experiment and have fun with it — for example, grow peas and harvest the shoots for your salads and stir-fries as they come up!
Choosing a Container
The pot size you need depends on what you want to grow. Almost anything will work:
Terracotta Pots
These are easy to find, relatively inexpensive, come in various sizes, and usually have a drainage hole in the bottom. Because they are porous, they can dry out more quickly in the heat of the sun.
Pails & Plastic Grower Pots
Three- to five-gallon pails hold enough soil for larger plants like tomatoes, peppers, okra, cucumbers, and other vining plants. Select pots with drainage holes, or drill them yourself.
Other Containers
Metal pails and stock tanks or wooden containers like flower boxes also work. Just make sure they have some holes in the bottom for drainage.
Selecting Your Soil
Properties
A good growing medium should:
- Have the ability to retain moisture but also drain well.
- Be dense but crumble easily, making it easy for roots to grow through
- Have a good balance of nutrients.
Local Resources
If you only have access to garden soil, you can supplement it with compost, which you can get for free at Ramsey County compost sites in the spring.
Soil to Compost Ratio
Your growing medium can be up to a third compost. Soil rich in organic matter holds moisture longer, which is a plus for container gardening!