Container Vegetable Gardening
Cynthia Sandberg
Love Apple Farms
www.LoveAppleFarms.com
Welcome to Love Apple Farms
Class Introduction
Please keep your talking to a minimum, allowing you and your
neighbors to get the full value of the class.
Please raise your hand if you have any questions, but have faith in my
agenda that we will probably cover your question eventually.
Add your name/email to Links List if you'd like to receive a PDF of
this presentation as well as links to resources discussed in class
What this class doesn't cover:
● Winter vegetable gardening
● Growing in the ground
● Starting seeds in a flat
Advantages of Container Gardening:
Best Sunlight
Gopher-proof
Disease-resistance
● Verticilium Wilt
● Fusarium Wilt
● Hard to get rid of diseases in soil
Bad soil
● Lead
● Salt
● Boron
● Clay
● Sand
Renters or Apartment Dwellers
What Is a Container?
● Anything with a bottom!
● Good volume for veggies = 2 cubic feet
UV Fabric Pots
● GeoPots
● Aerated container - air pruning
● Soft form, fabric container, but
holds shape
● UV rated - durable
● Love Apple Farms Tomato Plant
Sale, Mountain Feed, Hydroponics
stores
● Increases sunlight
● Wheels available (mobile)
● Back problems, wheelchair
accessible, up from pets
● Many sizes available for box and
height
Earthbox
● Water reservoir in bottom of box
● Fill to top with soil
● Black plastic "shower cap" keeps moisture in and weeds out
● Don't follow instructions for number of plants - cut in half (1
tomato per box)
● Make your own!
Wine Barrels
● 3 cubic feet
● 2 tomato plants per half barrel
● Don't let dry out - shrinks
● Use automatic irrigation
Half Drums
● Craigslist Farm+Garden
● Non-toxic
● Drainage holes
● Paint designs
Neoprene tube to cover jagged edge
Big Plastic Pots
● Shade: June - September
○ Shade cloth clipped to tomato cages
○ White sheet
● Sources:
○ Home Depot
○ Good nurseries
○ Hydroponics Stores
Clay Pots
Hanging Baskets
Not recommended for
tomato growing; only
use for dwarf or cherry
varieties.
Drainage Pipes
Vertical Gardens
● Affix containers to sides of houses and fences
● Grow up!
www.MonkeyPots.com
● Stackable pots
● Space saver
● Self-watering reservoir
Vertical garden from
Geopot.com
● 1 gallon pots
● Herbs, strawberries,
greens, flowers
Portable Vertical Gardens on Wheels
Savorysurroundings.com
● Boxes are interchangeable
● Paintable and stainable
● On wheels
● Sturdy construction
Recyclables: Get Creative!
Kiddie pool
Broken chair
Old bathtubs
Broken wheelbarrow
Drainage Holes
● For all homemade/recycled containers, drill enough holes in
bottom and sides for adequate drainage
● Or elevate container so it can drain easily
○ Bricks or Boards
LUNCH BREAK
Number of Plants to Container Size
Vegetable
4 Quart or #1
pot
20 Quart or #5 pot
60 Quart or #20 pot
Bush Bean, Melon, and Winter
Squash
X
1
3
Bean - Pole
1
3
6
Beet or Turnip
2
5
20
Carrot
X
15
40
Cucumber
X
2
6
Eggplant/Pepper
X
1
3
Herbs (Basil/Parsley/Cilantro
1
2
6
Lettuce or other greens
1
4
10
Radish
10
30
70
Summer Squash, Zucchini
X
X
1
Strawberry
1
2
6
Tomato
X
X
1
Siting Your Containers
North/South Orientation
Against a Warm Wall - Reflected Heat
Potting Soil
● Always use new, good quality
potting soil
● Don't use "dirt" from your
garden
● Don't recycle
○ Diseases
○ Low fertility
● We like Gardner & Bloome
Potting Soil
Recycle Old Potting Soil
● Use as carbon source in compost
pile
● Add to beds that have sunk/settled
when amending in between
plantings
Fertilizers
For 2 cubic feet (20 gallon pot):
● 2 cups G&B Tomato, Veg &
Herb Fert 4-6-3
● 2 handfuls Worm Castings
● 1 cup bone meal
● 1 pkg (half cup) of Mykos
Disinfecting Pots
● Disinfect when reusing
pots.
● 1 part bleach to 10 parts
water.
● Big tub.
● Dip pot quickly.
● Rinse with water.
● Air dry
Watering
● Try to water in a.m. not p.m.
● Frequency dependent on:
○ Weather
○ Size of plant
○ Size of pot
● Hand watering
● Drip irrigation (need multiple
emitters!)
Water-Retaining Pellets
● Swells full of water
● Dispenses slowly
● A little goes a long way!
Container-Friendly Varieties
● There are cultivars of some veg that stay small
● Acquire small varieties
○ Small pumpkins
○ Small butternut squash
"Summer Ball" Small Pumpkin
In 2 cubic feet:
● 3 - 4 pepper plants
● 3 eggplant plants
Tomato Container Recipe
● 2 handfuls G&B fish meal
● 2 handfuls G&B Tomato,Vegetable, & Herb (4-6-3) fertilizer
● 1 handful G&B bone meal
● 1 handful worm castings
● 3 - 4 crushed egg shells
● 2 aspirin tablets
● 20 gallon pot = 1 tomato
Place Tomato Cages over Pots
NOW LET’S GO OUTSIDE FOR
OUR PLANTING DEMO
Growing Potatoes In Pots
● Buy certified organic seed
potatoes
● Ronniger's Catalog
○ www.potatogarden.com
● "Chitting" seed potatoes:
Lay out seed potatoes by
sunny window for a month
until the sprouts are 1" long
● Cut seed potatoes into
smaller pieces with at least
1 or 2 "eyes" each
● Let cuts callous over for a
day or two
Growing Potatoes In Pots
● Sterilize 15 gallon pots with bleach solution
● Use sterile potting soil
● Fill pots with 2" soil, add 4 - 5 potatoes, cover with 2" soil
Growing Potatoes in Pots
● Once shoots reach 8 - 10",
cover up to top leaves with soil
● Continue until they grow out
of the pot
● Once potato flowers and dies,
potatoes are ready to harvest
● Potatoes require full sun
Bean Tepee
● 8 15-gallon pots
● 8 8' tall bamboo
● Wrap trellis netting
around bamboo
● Sow 8 bean seeds, cull
to 4
● Cucumbers, melons,
vining summer squash
Put Lattice Trellis on North Side of Pots
Cucumbers, Melons, Vining Squash
● Without trellis, when plant
spills over, pot ground needs
to be covered if it it's on
concrete or brick
Corn - Don't Do It!
● Many plants required to pollinate successfully
● Containers not a viable option for corn
Leafy Veg
● Lettuce, chard, kale
● Good for growing in pots all year long
● Don't require as much direct sunlight as summer veg
● Demand shading in summer
Herb Pots
Plant heat-loving herbs in top, South,
and West side of pot:
● Basil
● Oregano
● Thyme
● Rosemary
● Dill
Plant cool-loving and herbs on North
and East side of pot:
● Cilantro
● Parsley
● Chives
● Chervil
Supplemental Fertilizing
● Plants will need fertilizing EVERY WEEK!!!
● Best fertilizer: Worm Casting Tea
● Recipe: Big handful of castings in a 5 gallon bucket
● Let sit for two days
● Strain through cheesecloth or FRC or strainer and apply to plants
with a watering can or garden sprayer
● WCT foliar spray has been shown to: increase fertility, reduce
incidence of disease and reduce bug stress
● Available at Love Apple Farm Tomato Plant Sale in Scotts Valley
Aphids
● Green, Black, Red, Grey
● Watch for curling leaves
● Organic pesticide: Pyrethrins, Safer Soap,
G&B Insect Control Spray
● Organic preventative: Garlic spray
● Beneficial bugs: Lacewing, Ladybug
● Give infested leaves to your chickens
Squash Bug
● Attack all cucerbits, not
just squash
● Smell like bananas
● Hand pick early in season
before population
explodes
Cucumber Beetle
● Striped or spotted
● Carry diseases
● Pyrethrins
● Hand pick
● Attracted to yellow flowers
● Floating row cover before
flowering
Slugs, Snails, Earwigs, Pillbugs
● Sluggo
● Diatomaceous Earth
● Hand pick late at night with
flashlight
● GroPower Snail & Slug Away
Tomato Russet Mite & Thrips
● Microscopic - check weekly with 10x or 20x hand
lens
○ Look on foliage above dying leaves
○ New leaves curling w/ black frass
● Preventative: Neem Oil, Wettable Sulfur
○ Organic smothering agents
○ Contact all surfaces of plant
○ Every 2 weeks
● Organic miticides: Azatrol, Agri-mek
○ Several applications
Mites >>>
○ Early in morning
<<< Thrips
Leaf Miner
● Remove bad leaves
● Rub out egg sacs
● Spinosad
● Trichogramma Wasp
Beneficial Bugs
Lacewing
Soldier Beetle
Lacewing larva and aphid
Soldier beetle larva
Beneficial Bugs
Parasitic Wasp (Trichogramma)
Spider
Beneficial Bugs
Ladybug
Larva
Ladybug
Honeybee & Bumblebee
To Review:
● Size of container matters!
● Soil is key
● Fertilizing is a must
● Don't crowd them
● Watering is extra important
Upcoming Events at Love Apple
Intro to Bee Keeping $59 - Saturday, March 15 or April 27
Summer Vegetable Gardening $89 - Sunday, March 16 or
April 13
Gluten-Free Cooking $89 - Sunday, March 23
Growing Herbs $69 - Sunday, April 6
Beer Making $79 - Saturday, April 12
Simple Canning $79 - Saturday, April 19
Tomato Masters $49 - Saturday, April 26
Annual Spring Tomato Plant Sale - Biggest in California!
March 29 to June 1, 2014
Mon thru Sat: 10am - 5pm
Sun: 11am - 4pm
Ivy's Porch
5311 Scotts Valley Drive, Scotts Valley
Worm castings, Mykos, Geopots, potting soils, and amendments for sale too!
Available for Sale Today
● Worm Castings - $12
● G&B Potting Soil - $9
● Mykos - $5
● G&B Fertilizer - $8
● 20 gallon Geopot - $12
● Tomato Planting Calendar - $10
● Jams & Pickles - prices on jars