How to Grow Vegetables in Pots

You don’t need a big backyard to have a vegetable garden. All you need is a sunny spot on your patio or balcony and you can grow a range of vegetables. If you choose bush, or dwarf varieties then most vegetables will lend themselves to be grown in pots.

There is no need to purchase expensive pots either. You can use buckets, heavy plastic bags, barrels . . . you are only limited by your imagination and drainage. Whatever you decide to use you have to make sure it has adequate drainage or your plants will drown.

Make sure the containers are the right size. Too small and your plants will dry out quickly and become root bound. Too small and the soil will hold extra water and your plant's roots will rot.

Try to find containers in a pale colour so they don't absorb too much heat and cook your growing vegetables.

Invest in some good quality potting mix to get started. If you would like to make your own soil you could invest in a worm farm. Not only will you make wonderful rich soil, you will be recycling your green waste - no more food scraps in the rubbish - and you will also be creating fantastic liquid fertiliser.

Remember to water your vegetables regularly. Vegetables in containers dry out quickly and need more regular watering than those grown in a garden plot.

When looking for vegetable varieties to grow in your container garden keep an eye out for bush, space-saver or dwarf varieties. Below is a list of Vegetable varieties that work well in pots:

Tomatoes: Patio, Pixie, Tiny Tim, Saladette, Toy Boy, Spring Giant, Tumbling Tom, Small Fry
Peppers: Yolo Wonder, Keystone Resistant Giant, Canape, (Hot) Red Cherry, Jalapeno
Eggplant: Florida Market, Black Beauty, Long Tom
Squash: Dixie, Gold Neck, Early Prolific Straightneck, (Green) Zucco, Diplomat, Senator
Leaf Lettuce: Buttercrunch, Salad Bowl, Romaine, Dark Green Photo by FreeFotos.com Boston, Ruby, Bibb
Green Onions: Beltsville Bunching, Crysal Wax, Evergreen Bunching
Green Beans: Topcrop, Greencrop, Contender, (Pole) Blue Lake, Kentucky Wonder
Radishes: Cherry Belle, Scarlet Globe, (White) Icicle
Parsley: Evergreen, Moss Curled
Cucumbers: Burpless, Liberty, Early Pik, Crispy, Salty

This list is by no means exhaustive. You can grow potatoes, carrots, celery, most herbs . . . if you like to eat it then give it a try!!

Happy gardening.

For more info take a look at these websites:

http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/extension/container/container.html
http://gardening.about.com/od/vegetablepatch/a/ContainerVeggie.htm
http://gardening.about.com/od/vegetablepatch/a/ContainerVeggie_2.htm
http://www.mygreathome.com/outdoors/vegetables.htm
http://www.abc.net.au/gardening/stories/s1620935.htm