Container Gardening Tips

By | June 14, 2025

Container Gardening Tips – Want to grow vegetables in a container garden on your patio? Learn the best vegetables to grow in pots and the best garden containers to use!

I love container gardening and have been doing it on our deck or patio for the past 15 years.

Container Gardening Tips

Over the years I have tried both a cut flower garden and a patio vegetable garden and have enjoyed both immensely.

Container Gardening Tips And Tricks

This year, when food prices are rising, I have an even greater desire to grow my own vegetables at home. Getting started is easier than you think.

If you’ve been considering trying container gardening this year, here’s everything you need to know to get started with this fun outdoor hobby.

We have a little space in our country where I could grow a garden, but I realized that container gardening is much more our style.

Having vegetables close to the kitchen and in plain sight when we’re in our living room helps me remember to water them and I can see right away when things are ready to harvest.

Easy Spring Container Garden Ideas

Growing vegetables in containers also helps prevent rabbits and deer from walking away with our vegetables as we can move them out of the way when we are not around.

Herbs are always the first to be planted, is my annual vegetable garden every spring. There’s nothing quite like fresh herbs in a recipe.

I’ve shared how to harvest them and recipes will be coming with them over the next few weeks, so stay tuned.

If you’ve never tasted a home-grown fresh tomato picked ripe from your own garden, you’re seriously missing out.

Container Gardening: Best Fruits And Veggies To Grow, Tips For Planting And Care

One heirloom tomato, one cherry tomato, and one “early girl” that already has a few green tomatoes growing on it.

So far they seem to be doing well and every time I water them I salivate and smell the wonderful scent the leaves seem to give off.

A friend suggested I plant some arugula seeds at the base of my tomatoes to maximize space in my container garden, but those plants aren’t doing nearly as well as the ones I’ve sown in a separate container. I think the tomatoes provide too much shade.

However, if your tomato plant is still very small, this would be a great way to save space in your container.

Container Garden Tips

They grow best in the cooler weather that late spring brings, so plant them early in the season.

Sugar pea is a vine and you will need a trellis or pole to allow the vines to climb.

My husband helped me drive some wooden dowels into the container and they worked perfectly for the climbing vines.

I love spring onions. I add them to so many other recipes when I don’t have to buy a whole jar of them at the store.

Top 30 Container Gardening Ideas

I planted a whole container of green onions because I love them so much, but they can easily be added to an herb garden container or in a single row in a larger pot with something else.

My garden is overgrown in various plastic pots and window boxes that I have collected over the past few years.

I love them. They are self-watering, very deep, and my vegetables planted there grow the fastest and best of all the others in our garden.

Budget permitting, I’ll add two more of these next spring – 1 with lettuce, 1 with all arugula.

Gardenzeus Tips For Container Vegetable Gardening

This is another huge benefit of growing vegetables in containers! Because different plants do better with different amounts of sunlight, you can move your containers to where they will each be happiest.

This was mentioned a few weeks ago in a great blog post by Elizabeth Madrigal discussing where apartment culture fits into the urban farming movement.  There are also plenty of examples floating around the web about how to grow food, no matter where you live.  As a follow-up to our recent post on building beds in the ground, we wanted to share our experience with container gardening.  For many people who do not own their homes or live in apartments, container gardens may be the most manageable option to start growing food.  Check out the info below!

Container gardening is a method of growing fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers in pots, hanging baskets, planters and other containers. Container gardens are a great way for gardeners who don’t have a lot of space to grow their own food!

Look around your home for the best place to place your container garden. Which areas get the most sun? Which areas are shaded? Place your containers in a spot with the most sun! Plants need a lot of sunlight to grow and produce food.  For example:

Favorite Plant Combinations For Container Gardens

For most vegetable plants, you will need five-gallon containers or larger. Containers must have holes in the bottom to allow water to drain. Otherwise, the soil may become waterlogged and plant roots will not be able to get the air they need to survive!

The soil in a container garden must be good at holding water and nutrients. Potting soil is usually made with this in mind. Do not use soil from the ground, as it will not hold water or nutrients very well

You can buy potting soil at any garden store, but make sure the soil packaging says it can be used in a vegetable garden. We recommend using organic soil because it holds nutrients better and does not contain chemicals.

Plants in containers will take up less space and less soil than if they were planted in the ground. For example:

How To Grow A Flower Container Garden For Beginners

Smaller (dwarf) plant varieties grow better in containers than larger varieties (ie cherry tomatoes grow better in a container than large slicing tomatoes).

Plants growing in containers need much more watering than plants growing in the garden. This is because the water drains through the holes in the bottom. You can place a tray under the containers to catch the water that drains away. The plant then absorbs the water later.

Well fed plants are happy plants! Plants in a container garden need to be fertilized often because nutrients in the soil leach out of the holes in the container with each watering. We recommend fertilizing the containers at least once a month! This will make a big difference in the amount of food your garden produces.

Fish emulsion and compost tea are good organic (non-chemical) fertilizers. They are safe for food, people and pets to be around:

Tips For Growing A Flower Container Garden

Whether you choose a container garden, a sunken garden, or a bit of both, it’s definitely time to get started.   Grow tasty vegetables for your friends and family this growing season! Read about choosing containers and potting mixes, as well as planting, fertilizing and watering. Get tips for mixed plant containers and vegetable gardening – everything you need to reap the rewards of this versatile and creative form of garden design.

Container gardening is one of the most versatile and creative forms of garden design. Planting a container garden is very similar to creating a flower arrangement. However, live plants are enjoyed throughout the season. Almost any plant will grow in a container when the right conditions are provided, adding a versatile splash of color and artistry wherever desired. Some other reasons for container gardening are as follows:

These are just some of the benefits of container gardening. The biggest disadvantage of growing plants in containers is the maintenance requirements of watering and fertilizing. This publication discusses some useful techniques, including choosing containers and growing media (potting mix), choosing plants and planting, fertilizing and watering your garden.

In general, plants can be grown in anything that will hold a growing medium and allow for proper drainage. Some of the more traditionally used containers include terracotta (clay) pots, plastic pots, hanging baskets, wire baskets lined with peat moss or fiber liners, concrete planters, planters, whiskey barrels, 5-gallon buckets, tubs, and baskets. . Some of these containers are more durable than others.

Container Garden — Spring Garden Tips — Gardening Charlotte

Be creative when choosing a container. Choosing a container that matches the look you want to create is half the fun of container gardening. Containers can be window boxes (wooden or plastic), wooden wine crates, tires, dirt bags, or your favorite old shoes!

Some self-watering containers have been made to improve drainage and also have built-in reservoirs for watering plants. Whichever container you choose, consider the following:

2) The container must be large enough to hold the minimum amount of medium required for the growth of mature plants.

4) Don’t forget to match the color of the container with the plant materials. Containers can be painted to create a different look or create a cooler surface that will reflect heat.

Container Gardening Tips For Beginners

5) Consider whether you will later want to move the container to another location. If so, keep the weight factor in mind. Styrofoam peanuts can be used in the bottom of the container rather than filling it completely with potting mix. New fiberglass or polystyrene flower pots are also light and decorative.

It is important to choose a growing medium that drains well, but