Plants that do best when potted

[scalloway1]

This may have been asked already but there are a ton of feeds to sort through!!

We started planting in baskets this year because we are renting. Can you provide me with the best ways to plant in containers as well which plants do the best!? We tried tomatoes, they did ok. Hot Peppers did ok. My cucumbers and squash never grew past their flowers.

Any information, tips, or help is greatly appreciated!

 

[gata montes]

Almost any vegetable that grows in the ground can be grown in a container, in fact nowadays, there are even seeds available especially for this purpose, you can get bush courgettes/zucchinis, tomatoes, peppers and eggplants, together with many dwarf varieties and then there are the trailing varieties especially for hanging baskets, but in reality any seeds will do, so long as you get the soil right, make sure they have adequate light and the right amount of water and feed.
The only vegetable you may not wish to consider growing is pumpkins, not because it won't grow in a pot, but because of their size
Apart from all the vegetables, you can also grow herbs of every variety, plus many varieties of soft fruit, even fruit trees.

 

[scalloway1]

Thanks so much for the information!!

Which soil would you recommend? We used Miracle grow made for vegetables but they still didn't seem to grow. Partially because they have scorched on some days but I would of at least expected a small vegetable to form!

 

[zigs]

I just use a Multipurpose compost, I make my own liquid feed from weeds crammed into a barrel of water, Nettles, Comfrey & Seaweed are brilliant in a feed.

Most nutrient in containers gets used up about 2 weeks into decent growth, so you need to feed a little then, and more when things are setting fruit.

Might be an idea to provide some shading between 10am & 2pm if scorching is a problem, most plants except Sweet Corn can't use the Sun during that time as the stomata in their leaves close to prevent water loss, which also makes them run out of CO2, which they need for photosynthesis.

 

[gata montes]

Thanks so much for the information!!

Which soil would you recommend? We used Miracle grow made for vegetables but they still didn't seem to grow. Partially because they have scorched on some days but I would of at least expected a small vegetable to form!

Like Zigs has already said, a good multi-purpose compost works well, that is, if you don't make your own compost, but it does need to be a good quality soil based one, and one of the best on the market, if it is available in your area is 'John Innes', which is the No.1 choice of many professional gardeners

Regarding fertilizer, many commercially made composts come with feed pellets already incorporated in the compost, but because, as Zigs said, the level of fertilizer in the compost depletes quite quickly, I tend to use the sustained release feed pellets, which normally last for the entire growing season and only have to give extra feed to the extra hungry plants like tomatoes, which always seem to have an insatiable appetite

As for your scorching, this could also be caused from moisture left on the leaves after watering, which when, then exposed to strong sunlight, can burn the leaves or even fry a young plant, so it is always best to water the soil around the plant and not the leaves if watering when the sun is up.

You don't say what sort of climate you are gardening in, but this is where I would disagree with Zigs regarding sunlight, as I garden in a climate where we receive long hours of unrelenting, scorching hot sun for up to 10 hours a day, combined with temperatures that are regularly in excess of well over 40 degrees centigrade for months on end. Although none of my, nor my neighbors plants have any form of shading , apart from the occasional exploding watermelon - we have never had any scorched or fried plants, only a very bountiful supply of fruit and vegetables but if gardening in these conditions. you need to make sure that the plants are thoroughly watered in the morning prior to the sun coming up.

I may well be wrong on this one but I'd always understood that most vegetables required at least 6 hours of sunlight a day in order to produce well, and that if giving some shade, this was best done during the hottest part of day, which can of course vary, depending on which part of the world you are in.

 

[scalloway1]

Thank you so much for this information. I don't think we ever realized not to water the actual plant in the sun, makes sense. We currently live in Ohio, so some days its hotter than heck and some times its cool! Getting in the habit of waking up and watering them first thing will be something to remember! We always just watered them when we noticed it. Sad but true! We both love to sleep in so if our children let us, we do!! Which makes for a bad schedule for the rest of the day! As far as composting, I would really love to get into do that as well... Is it a lot of work? Expensive to get started? Smelly!?? Guess I can ask my questions over in that forum! lol

 

[gata montes]

Thank you so much for this information. I don't think we ever realized not to water the actual plant in the sun, makes sense. We currently live in Ohio, so some days its hotter than heck and some times its cool! Getting in the habit of waking up and watering them first thing will be something to remember! We always just watered them when we noticed it. Sad but true! We both love to sleep in so if our children let us, we do!! Which makes for a bad schedule for the rest of the day! As far as composting, I would really love to get into do that as well... Is it a lot of work? Expensive to get started? Smelly!?? Guess I can ask my questions over in that forum! lol

You are welcome and am glad that we were able to help and can assure you, that once you see your plants flourishing, watering them adequately will just come naturally and you'll do it on autopilot

I have one tip for you though, when you water your pots, make sure you water them thoroughly, by first pouring the water into the pot so that it comes to the level of the rim, let it soak in for about half an hour, and then keep repeating the exact process, as many times as you need to, until the water runs out of the bottom of the pot, that way you can be sure that your plants are thoroughly watered and if you should perhaps miss a day they won't suffer too much.
You can also water them in the evening before the sun goes down, but sometimes watering at night can make plants more susceptible to viruses and diseases especially powdery mildew, which is something many vegetables suffer from - so morning is best if you can manage it

As for making compost its very easy, you don't need a lot of room and it doesn't smell either and if you have a look at the Compost section of this forum - am sure that you will find some extremely helpful tips.

 

[scalloway1]

Thanks!! I think I might have always been afraid of over watering them?? I definitely was not giving them enough water if your method is proper for keeping them hydrated!!