container gardening... what to grow and how...

[Sarico]

hi. i'm a new entry in this forum as garden lover but i was looking for more info for my new experience and i found a lot of you are in my same situation that growing in container is the only way to grow... a lot of web site give a lot of tips but most of them say opposite opinion... some say that growing tomato in a least 20 gallon container but a lot said that in a grow bag ( 27 litre ) is enoght for 3 plants... so why not everyone has already tried growing veg in pot can give an advice of what to grow in wich size container and how many?
i start with what i grew last year. i've grown courgette in 28 cm bucket from B&Q (12 litre) and i had i think a good harvest considered the wheater last year and i start them late may. i also grown strawbery in a 20 cm pot as hanging basket..
thanks in advance for the reply

[Two_Sheds]

growing tomato in a least 20 gallon container but a lot said that in a grow bag ( 27 litre ) is enoght for 3 plants..

Tomato plants come in different varieties and different sizes.

Some are huge, some are small. However, grow bags are too shallow for tomatoes, imo. They dry out too quickly, which damages the fruits.

[Sarico]

Thanks two shed. So what you think is good for cordon tomatoes like moneymaker o gardendelight? I read some where in this forum that if you use a grow bag with a ring culture is better. Is that right?

[Potstubsdustbins]

Hi Sarico, Moneymaker & Gardeners Delight will both be OK at one plant per 7/8ltr pot about the size of a black cut flower bucket.

I do nothing fancy just bang them in the bucket, water and feed them and always get a good crop.

Over the years I have tried the ring culture method and used increased pot sizes and found no difference in the size of crop I get. My motto is keep it simple.

Colin

[Sarico]

thanks colin this is a good news for me. i will plant 3 of each variety so i think is a good idea to see the difference considered that the summer here in manchester is not that great i wil try one of each in ring culture one of each in grow bag and one of each in a 30 cm pot (12 ltr) ...

[Potstubsdustbins]

Sarico which ever way you decide to go the most important thing with container gardening what ever the plant is the watering and feeding.

If there is anything I can help with just let me know.

Colin

[hollychap]

i grow carrots in pots big oblong pots i fill with the cheap £1 growbags , this year i am going to try getting a year long supply, its only a couple of weeks ago that i harvested my last few which i transfered to the greenhouse when the weather got bad. i also grow potatos in pots for chritmas dinner

[arpoet]

I grow toms in flower buckets with holes about 2 inch from the base and stand each bucket in a free carrier bag. Any excess water seeps into the bag and keeps the growing medium at the bottom of the bucket moist.
Roger

[solway cropper]

There's almost no fruit or veg that you can't grow in a container. I'd agree that grow bags are not really deep enough and I just empty them out, mix in some home-made compost and put that in flower tubs for tomatoes and peppers. Bigger plants need bigger containers and watering/feeding is very important, as PTD says.

Have a look at what I do here:
the recycled gardener: container growing

[Potstubsdustbins]

Hey SC (Colin) I have just realised that container growing must be a Colin thing.

Colin

[cyllo]

I grew tomatoes in 26cm pots (I can't remember the exact size, got it in the 99p store) last year, and it was successful.

[Sarico]

Thanks so much so finally we can say for sure that most of the cordon tomatoes will be happy in a container if 25-30cm that will be about 8-15 ltr of soil but require a daily water and weekly feed. Please confirm that. I ask to the expert of the forum can we make a list somewhere with each veg and info how to grow in container ?
And for hollychap can you give any more info about growing carrot in container like size of container how many carrots in the container and about water and feed. U didn't plan to grow carrots but I have some free seeds that I had with the magazine so I will give a try. Thanks

[piskieinboots]

I grow my toms in grow bags but I use the ring culture method - because, as TS says, the bag alone would dry out too quickly. I've used this method for several years now and have really good success from it



Old bottom-less pots would work just as well

[hollychap]

container is 27" long 9" deep i just fill with a cheap growbag and sow heavily

[Currysniffa]

Before I had allotments I started in containers, I used to cut growbags in half for tomatoes



Everything else grow really well, but as said before because your growing in containers you have to be on top of the watering.