One of the things that is most important to me is growing my own food when possible for my family. There’s nothing more rewarding than growing the food that you end up cooking with! However, as most of you know, I live in an apartment, so there isn’t a ton of space outdoors to grow vegetables. Because of this, I often turn to growing vegetables in containers. Fortunately, growing vegetables in containers is just as easy as growing them anywhere else. Follow these container gardening tips to start growing vegetables indoors in no time at all.
Tip #1: Choose The Right Size Container
One of the biggest mistakes in container gardening is picking the wrong size container to grow your plant in. For example, plants grown in containers too large often struggle with root rot. On the other hand, plants grown in containers that are too small often produce small yields. A general rule of thumb is to choose a container 3x as large as the current root ball. If you’re growing vegetables from seed, this means that you will have to transplant them at least twice to optimize growth.
Tip #2: Fertilize Regularly
Because your vegetables are grown in containers versus in the soil, they tend to run out of nutrients quickly. In order to keep your vegetable plants producing a high-yield, fertilize at least once monthly to ensure optimal growth.
Tip #3: Wash/Santitize Your Containers
Pests spread quickly when growing vegetables in containers, so it’s generally recommended to wash containers in between growing seasons. Use a mixture of three parts bleach to one part water to get the job done. Your plants will thank you!
Tip #4: Water Frequently
This goes back to tip #2—since your container vegetables can’t pull nutrients from the soil, they run out quickly. This applies to watering, as well. Water your container garden frequently, at least once a day if your container garden lives on the balcony or outdoors. If your garden is indoors, do the soil test before watering to prevent issues with root rot and powdery mildew.
Tip #5: Companion Planting Is Key
Since quarters are usually tight as far as container gardening is concerned, make sure to pick plant varieties that play well together and won’t compete with one another or spread disease. Carrots, cucumbers, and lettuce all work well within close proximity to one another. Additionally, beans and squash also do really well together.
Tip #6: Use Labels
It’s hard to remember what you planted, I get it. Label your plants after transplanting to their containers so that it’s easier to keep track of things.
