Container Gardening

 

My tomatoes are starting to wind down from summer. The cherry tomatoes are doing better than the big ones. The peppers are still doing very well.

My backyard soil is filled with tree roots and so it's not a great place for growing vegetables. But I live in the Garden State and I think it's required that we have some kind of garden. I have been gardening since my father taught a 5-yearold me how to put in tomato plants (deep!) in our backyard garden.

I could have made raised beds but I have been using containers for the past 10 years. My containers contain very good soil which I mix every spring from my two composters and some premium top soil, manure and peat moss that I buy. 

Conatiners have been a good alternative for me. I can place them where there is the proper sunlight for that plant. I need to be very attentive to watering as containers can dry out quickly. During our hottest days this summer, daily watering was required.

Here are some other places to look for information. It's never too early to plan next year's garden - and there are some good end of season sales on containers.

Container Gardening with Native Plants: Missouri Botanical Garden Plant List
Container Gardening with Native Plants: Tips from Aububon