Growing Veg etc in planters 31 December 2006 at 1:30PM in Greenfingered MoneySaving 45 replies 6.9K views

lil_me

I've been inspired by the posts on growning own veg, fruit, herbs etc but with 2 dogs, 2 active boys and a not very big garden (that we've just spent the last year growning grass for them to play on) I wanted to know any ideas for what I can grow without digging it back up (and that the dogs won't dig back up/poop/pee on)

Does anyone grow their own supplies in planters, any tips, ideas on which to plant and how big planters need to be appreciated Or if you know of any websites with good ideas.

I've not grown anything since I lived at home many years ago apart from a few flowers and grass, but my youngest loves gardening and will love to help

I do have a concrete area I can put some planters on and would liek to use the space.

Thanks in advance

chickadee

This year we grew potatoes in an old dustbin (not very aesthetically pleasing but functional nonetheless) and tumbling tomatoes in tubs. You can grow all sorts of things in tubs. Try lettuces, radish, any salad leaves. You will need to remember to keep them well-watered though. Good luck!

pol

You could grow lettuce in small troughs or med plant pots. I've grown radish and beetroot in lemonade bottles with the top cut off, they're deep enough for the roots. Spring onions can be grown in cell trays, just pull them when they're as big as you like.
The pots that are about 12-14 inches across are excellent for peas and beans, just use garden canes for a wigwam. I fit about 6 beans in them, which keeps us going all summer.
Potatoes do well in old compost bags, you just keep adding more compost as they grow.
Herbs will fit in just about anything, you could alternate parsley, thyme etc in between the other veg.
Happy growing!

pol

lil_me

Wow, that is great, thanks for the quick response I am feeling even more inspired and just been having a look for when the garden centres are open after New Year. I've only ever been in one to buy a pond kit but someone said there are other shops which do the planters etc cheap. I did get seed trays for little DSs flowers in Somerfields. Bin idea is a good one, sure we could paint it to make it look good. DS said he's going to water them, he loves gardening and getting his hands mucky so my back won't suffer too much hopefully especially if doing them in planters.

Bambam

Ours is a small garden with a very small veg plot, so we grow quite a bit in pots. We use the largest plastic pots we could find and have successfully grown potatoes, carrots even a wigwam of runner beans. When we grow our tomatoes we don't use the grow bags as they're not very sturdy (unless you tie the supports to a fence) so we just 'decant' the soil into a large pot and grow them in those. The last 2 years we have also grown courgettes (one per pot) in pots. You can even use the pots which are about 2 or 3 feet long and about 6-8 inches wide (the sort you would put on a window ledge) to grow spring onions and radish and lettuce. On Christmas Eve I went into the garden and picked a leek to use. Within 5 minutes of picking, it was being cooked. How fresh is that?

Good luck with your project.

lil_me

See that is what I like, fresher the better, rest of the family are not big veg eaters so buying a big pack at the supermarket isn't always economical for us, but I love my veg.

Herbs are something I love fresh, will maybe start with those as they can be done indoors

I am going to do carrots definately, as I adore them, just need to source big enough planters for them, and potatoes and leeks.

Of course won't be enough to be self sufficient but the health aspects are very appealing

Thanks everyone

pancakequeen

I got lots of the buckets that Asda use for their flowers for free. Just keep an eye on when they are tidying up the flower display as they put the empty ones at the back of the stands. Then ask if you can have the empty ones as they just throw them away. You then just need to put holes in the bottom for drainage.
HTH
Anne

lynzpower

I did rocket in one of those old trays you get value mushrooms in on the kitchen windowsill. seeds were a set of them, spinach, a few other lettuces and corinader for 2.00 ( plant in march IIRC)

This was great, sometimes you only need a little bit dont you for on a burger or pizza, and those bags always go to waste in my house.

Additionally those bagged salads are an environmental menace, salad prep in Africa is one of the most damaging environmental problems leading to masssive drought. plus the damage of flying a bag around the world then driven to my local tescos, for me to bin most of it, was ridiculous. So I stopped :T

I watch this with interest.

What can I grow in January in pots?

JoJo_Sparkly

I'm also keen on using the garden for a bit of veg this year - but was also thinking about the kitchen windowsill - think I'm going to try a few potatoes and Tomatoes outside in pots but can I grow lettuce etc on the windowsill now ?
Saw a beautiful lemon tree in Homebase yesterday - it was £40 :eek: but smothered in Lemons I was SOOOO tempted - but talked myself into walking away - can anyone tell me if this is a good buy? I use lemon juice in cooking, cleaning and drinks (can't live without ice and a slice!) - Would it be ok in the Kitchen and then outdoors in the summer months?
What do you think?????

Jojo

Mrs_Froogle

one of the things that I do is to plant up hanging baskets with hanging tomatoes. You can easily put 2 (maybe 3) in a basket and even hand baskets underneath one another (just put the hook through the grid) if you buy the wire type

Jo

troll35

We had great success with the short carrots 'chanteney red core' (?spelling) in tubs approx 2ft by 6inches wide by 6 inches deep. I couldn't believe how many carrots could be grown in one pot (at least 4lb). We also grew courgettes, squash peas and runner beans in larger square tubs. As someone has already mentioned the black pots they keep flowers in at the supermarket are excellent, especially for tomatoes.