I was reading a magazine piece by Alys Fowler, in The Edible Garden magazine, about how small vegetable gardening recommendations are just large scale advice squeezed into a small space. She said..."I want vegetable varieties that are truly suitable for small spaces (particularly perennial vegetables) not ones that suffer from being squeezed or will quickly outgrow their spot.".
Many of us have limited space for vegetable gardens. Do you look for space saving varieties or do you just grow the varieties you like or that sound tempting? Would you like it if there were more options for small space vegetable gardeners?
Comments
I’d like information for growing things in pots and what will do well that way. Including squash in pots. How big does it have to be for the roots? Which varieties?
I’ve been trying to match sizes with what I have, but with mixed results so far.
The 2 gallon & 5 gallon buckets I have the zucchini (the bush type, not the sprawling) in seem a little small, the plants seem to want something a little larger. Maybe a lot larger.
The tomatoes (cherry — one red, one yellow pear) seem to be fine in 5 gallon buckets. Now that we’re finally having warm weather, they’re setting fruit.
I have lots of land space, but not all that much space in full sun. (I’m in a forest.) The things that do best here are perennials, which is why I have more in the way of small fruiting bushes than vegetables. But it’d be nice to have a few veggies in the spots where they will grow.
Rowan, I really like growing vegetables in pots. It means more watering, but the pots make things a zone warmer and I get lots of eggplants, melons and other things that would take forever in my soil.
But size is a bit of any art. Most roots will fill out any size pot you give them and get very thirsty, several times a day. I do have some general pointers here, but weather and veg varieties keep me making adjustments.
I’m growing 3 ‘Astia’ zucchini plants in a potato bag and I’m pleased with how they’re doing. I’d love to hear about container preferences, from others.
I grow everything in raised beds to avoid gophers using the french intensive raised bed method. Everything is crammed in to cut down on weeds and watering. Since we have cold mountain mornings, hot loving plants are grown in pots in the greenhouse. There ten pots with five different peppers growing in the greenhouse. Plum and cherry tomatos are grown in large pots.
I like covering the ground with plants. I always say, if you need a lot of mulch, you don’t have enough plants.
Catherine, do yo have any problems getting the peppers pollinated in the greenhouse?
I’m glad I don’t have gophers. About the only pest that has been a nuisance in my garden this year are the chipmunks and no bed seems raised enough to keep them out.
You do not have to worry about gophers or chipmunks, if you have a cat outside. We live in the country and our cats are allowed to roam. They very seldom bother the birds, but rodents are gone.
Besides, they are nice to pet.
Sandi Dalton
I would also like to know more a about pot sizes and types of veggie plants appropriate for pots. I am not able to bend down.
Thank you
Sandra, I used to have outdoor cats too, and you’re right about them keeping the rodents in check. Now we have the double threat of cars and coyotes, so my guard cats are out of commission. Darn.
lore, I’ll work on expanding Growing Vegetables in Pots. It seems like a lot of people prefer to grow them that way.