Gardening in pots and containers .

Vegetable gardening in pots and containers . The gardening season is already coming to an end for most people, oh yes, there is still plenty in the garden, kale , Brussels sprouts, chicory (sugar loaf), chicory roots are already being harvested to put on, winter endive, a stray head of lettuce, winter carrots and much more, but the real season is pretty much over. (Click on the image for the seeds ) And then we are already looking at the new year, because before you know it, broad beans are planted again and the seeds of the turnip greens go back into the ground... that is possible, because February is the month for me to sow broad beans , although some do that in December. The results that I hear and read are different, it may also depend on where you live, here in the east it is often much colder than in the coastal provinces. Anyway, you make that choice yourself, the consequences, if they are disappointing, are then also for yourself and if it works, then you have been lucky. (Click on image for seeds ) Some growers have already sown the first peppers , yes, for many of them the new season starts again in October, with heat lamps and grow lamps . There is often commentary on it, but if you look into it further, you will discover that they are not doing so badly after all. I'll wait a little longer, I'm not ready yet, but the plants I got this spring from pepper friends, plants that were sown in October, gave a wonderful yield, if I had sown them in March, that would certainly not have been possible. I should add that not all peppers are the same; one plant produces ripe fruit faster than another, as I have heard myself. (planting pepper in a pot) But something is going to change here in the coming year, since 1973 I already had a piece of garden, which later became bigger and bigger, first as a child a strip of land at a farmer's, for some cabbage plants and later a real allotment, where as a 16 year old I was allowed to go with the tractor to bring my bean poles (from the forest)... Later the garden became bigger and bigger and now, now the point has been reached to take it a bit easier, there is a good reason for that and so I am stopping with the current garden, which I have enjoyed very much. But stopping is a "bad" word when you have had this hobby for so long. That is why I am going to a smaller garden, about 20m2, in addition to a number of flower pots , mortar tubs and I am also allowed to use two containers at height, containers of concrete of 6 meters long and 1 meter wide, two of these containers . A small part is now occupied by strawberries. These containers contain clean soil, which is soil that is suitable for vegetable gardening. A thick layer of leaves with compost is first placed at the bottom of the containers , followed by soil, which does mean that the soil sinks a little every year, but you can top it up if necessary. The pots , I will work with potting soil , of course I will have to fertilize, but there are enough resources on the market such as liquid plant food. It is new, so I will also have to look at which vegetables are suitable for growing in pots . The containers are more than 40cm deep, in which I can grow various vegetables. Furthermore I will have to take into account the sun and the shade, also the rain, so holes at the bottom of the containers . I bought organic hydro grains last year for the bottom of some pots that I already had, but I don't know if I will do that again, a few potsherds work well too. If necessary, I mix some clean soil with potting soil to put in the pots , because I am afraid that potting soil alone will dry out quickly. I will first provide the raised containers with a layer of lime in February, if you have acidic soil it is good to lime regularly, that is to keep the acidity of the soil less acidic. With sandy soil you have more trouble with that than with clay soil. Liming is not recommended for potatoes , but yes, I am not going to put potatoes in these containers . Moreover, potatoes also do well on slightly less rich soil. Potatoes that grow on lime soil sometimes show scab spots on their skin, not that it is bad for consumption. Furthermore, I will use cow manure pellets and patentkali, which is allowed in organic farming. So strawberries are already in the containers , that is also a real plant that many people grow in pots and containers and that is quite easy. Last year I already had about seven pepper plants in pots and that went really well, so they will be added again. peppers also belong to the peppers and these too can be grown in pots just like aubergines and tomatoes. Of course there are different tomatoes and you can probably best put a balcony tomato in a pot, simply because it is small and compact. But stubborn as I am, I will also try others. My tomatoes for next year will probably be at home, at the front, because that is where the afternoon sun is, and they are under a balcony, so no rain will come on them. Last year there was 1 orange tomato plant there, which did very well and did not suffer from the infamous potato blight at home. Beets and carrots also seem to me to grow well in a pot, just like spinach and since I got to know New Zealand spinach last year, which is actually an ice plant, I will definitely plant it again, probably in a mortar tub, because it grows easily and you can pick it all season and it grows back just like that. The tops, with stalks and the large leaves, are deliciously tasty when spinach is prepared. At least in my case cooked, it can also be done in a wok of course, but I also hear reactions that it is heavier on the stomach, but cooked it is good to eat. Beans will also work well, and maybe I'll put a courgette in a tub, because, well, I like courgettes , especially the yellow variety. But now that I have the large containers at my disposal, I will be planting beans in them next year, low beans , so called pole or bush beans . The Argus is a delicious and richly growing low variety, they will definitely go in there. And next to it a runner bean, in this case I'm going to try the wireless Admires. The order from Moestuinweetjes.com has already been received and it contains these Admires, but also the Witkiem broad beans , well as a child I didn't like broad beans and now I find them delicious. (Click on the image for seeds ) They will not be placed in a pot, that does not seem like anything to me, but in the containers at height, do I dare to place a few and the rest? Well, for over a year and a half I have had a small touring caravan on a campsite, I also have a garden, which I mentioned before, about 15m2 of garden to use. So this year the pots will be placed there and the containers at height are very close by. That piece of land, I'm going to put some broad beans there, but because I'm in the middle of nature, it could well be that I have to sow them beforehand, I've never done that, but with all the animals that walk around here, I'm not sure whether they'll stay in the ground after sowing. Imagine if I sow everything for nothing... It could well be that I have to move February, the time for me to sow broad beans , to March, that's also possible of course. I will still try pole beans in the shape of the tasty holy bean, but I don't expect too much from this yellow forest soil, although the Dahlias and Marigolds , with the necessary additional fertilization, have done well there this year. (Click on the image for seeds ) And of course a small corner in the garden has to be cleared for the beautiful Zinnia , because what used to be the Dahlia for me, is now the Zinnia , an indispensable part of Wim Boers' environment... and that of many other garden lovers ;) . And furthermore, it will have to be looked at each year what is and what is not suitable for pots and containers . All this in combination with light, heat and moisture. Fortunately, I am not the only one, in recent years many have gone before me and I have seen many possibilities pass by in our vegetable garden group. In addition to my options, everyone knows the square meter boxes , with compartments for sowing vegetables and herbs, for example, people are also very positive about that and how often do you see examples of pallets from which beautiful racks are made on the wall, provided with beautiful plants. ( see moestuinweetjes.com for various containers ) Of course it doesn't all happen automatically, you will have to make sure that the soil in the containers / pots does not dry out, and you also have to fertilize, as I mentioned earlier, once a week in the pots and perhaps a little less often in large containers . But this care is also our hobby, because whether we grow in the garden or in pots and containers , the result must come, we all want to harvest something tasty. This past year I have seen surprising results from what is grown in pots . Some crops I never expected, e.g. Someone showed a picture of a beautiful thick white cabbage in a pot, I would not have dared to do that, but that is also possible. And with carrots in containers of one meter high, I don't expect any carrot fly, which is a bonus. Moreover, containers and pots are easy to keep free of weeds. Much more is possible than we always think, experience will teach us that. (Click on the image for seeds ) potatoes in a tub of mortar, potatoes in bags, boy, can you enjoy smaller vegetable gardens so much more. Potatoes in bags is I think, for most people well known, there are several possibilities. Or you take a bag with potting soil and you put plant potatoes in it or you build it up layer by layer, first a layer of soil in a large bag, then plant potatoes , then another layer on top of that and as some people do, earthing up each time, in this case covering it again with soil when the foliage comes up. But you can also grow potatoes in pots and when they are fifteen to twenty cm high, take a bag of potting soil , make holes in it from the outside and plant a plant in each hole. I will have to think carefully about which method I like best, the last one appeals to me the most. Even vertical gardening is a possibility, as I once showed you to grow cucumbers upwards on 1 square meter. And what about growing lettuce in a plastic bottle, cut this bottle in half, the part with the cap in the other part, turn the cap slightly open, water in the lower part, so that it can be absorbed by the plant through the small opening, hang the whole thing from the lowest branch of a fruit tree, fun to try, I have already seen several photos of it. This is how you grow a beautiful head of lettuce in a tree or on the edge of a balcony. ( my little vegetable garden for the coming year + two extra strips, where the Dahlias stood this year.) And so a completely different possibility for gardening comes, next year I will do my best to make something beautiful of it and show it with photos and I also hope to see from many more experienced growers what they have grown in this way. Working with cut PET bottles is also possible. I think it is really possible to grow a lot in pots , show how creative you are and there will surely be plenty of things on our plates to enjoy. To those who also do this, but also to others who have a vegetable garden, good luck with the hobby. Wim Boers