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Wednesday, May 13, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Container gardens are easy to grow
By Jodi Schneider
Correspondent
The weather9s warming
up, and now may be the per-
fect time to start a garden.
Gardening is a relax-
ing recreational activity that
can provide great personal
rewards. During this time,
when many people are work-
ing at home and students are
learning at home, gardening
can be a positive family activ-
ity to adopt.
For beginners looking to
start gardening with small
patio spaces or a deck to grow
on, container gardening is the
way to go. All you need is the
right size container, potting
soil, plants, and slow-release
fertilizer.
Almost anything can func-
tion as a container, from an
old wheelbarrow to a galva-
nized tin bucket. The beauty
of container gardening is that
it allows you to be creative,
and if you have a big enough
container you can grow just
about anything.
Besides having pots, tubs,
and half barrels overflow-
ing with flowers, container
gardening can serve a practi-
cal purpose, too. Gardeners
limited to a balcony or other
small areas can produce a
wide variety of vegetable
crops in containers.
Since going to the gro-
cery store during these try-
ing times can feel like an act
of desperation, why not cut
down on hours spent brav-
ing masked lines and spend
more time planting your own
<Pandemic Victory Garden=
in your own safe area? A
<Victory Garden= was a home
vegetable garden, planted to
increase food production dur-
ing wartime.
It9s important to decide
what edible plant you want
to grow in each container.
Several factors help deter-
mine how large and deep the
container must be. Consider
the size and shape of a plant9s
root system; whether it is a
perennial, annual, or shrub;
and how rapidly it grows.
If you want your plants
to grow healthy and provide
an abundance of fruit, then
you have to make sure the
container you plant them
in is large enough. Large
containers hold more soil,
which stays moist longer
and resists rapid temperature
fluctuations.
Whatever container you
choose, drainage holes are
essential. Without drainage,
soil will become waterlogged
and plants may die. There
must be enough drainage
where excess water can drain
out.
Here are a few suggestions
on what kind of containers
you can choose from: clay
or terracotta containers are
attractive but breakable and
easily damaged by freezing
and thawing.
Wooden containers, espe-
cially raised bed contain-
ers, are beautiful in gardens.
Wood is natural-looking and
protects roots from rapid
temperature swings. You can
build wooden planters your-
self. Choose a naturally rot-
resistant wood such as cedar
or locust, or use pine treated
with a preservative.
Plastic and fiberglass pots
and planters are lightweight,
relatively inexpensive, and
available in many sizes and
shapes.
If your container seems
too deep, you can put a layer
of gravel or styrofoam in the
bottom to reduce the amount
of potting soil required.
Since containers are heavy
once they are filled with soil,
decide where they will be
located and move them into
position before filling and
planting.
To give your container-
grown crops the best home
possible, start out by selecting
the right soil to fill your pots.
Plain garden soil is too dense
for container gardening. For
containers up to 1 gallon in
size, use a houseplant soil
mixture. For larger contain-
ers, use a relatively coarse
soilless planting mixture to
maintain the needed water
and air balance. Think of the
potting soil for your container
garden as the foundational
nourishment those plants will
have. Try to invest in a high-
quality organic potting soil
from a local greenhouse or
nursery.
Soil-containing or soil-
less potting mixes offer all of
these features. Potting mixes
are filled with organic matter
such as peat moss, compost
and bark chips to provide
nutrients and a good pH bal-
ance for your plants. Look
for mixes with vermiculite
or perlite, which help aer-
ate the soil and retain mois-
ture. Any mixes without ver-
miculite should be saved for
herbs, which won9t wither if
they go dry occasionally. For
large pots that may need to be
moved, choose soilless mixes
since they are light. Because
potting mixes have been
heated during processing,
they are free of weed seeds,
pests and disease.
One tip is to pre-moisten
soil either by watering it
before you fill containers
or by flooding the contain-
ers with water several times
and stirring. Be sure the soil
is uniformly moist before
planting.
You will also need to fer-
tilize your plants. Once plants
are established, usually fer-
tilize your plants every two
weeks to help keep them fed
and growing strong all season
long.
PHOTO BY JODI SCHNEIDER
Mix herbs together as barbecue blend of thyme, rosemary, and oregano.
Almost any vegetable,
flower, herb, shrub, or small
tree can grow successfully in
a container.
You can grow vegetables
in individual containers 4
from large pots to five-gallon
buckets or half barrels, the
largest of which will accom-
modate a single tomato plant
or several smaller vegetables
such as broccoli or cabbage.
Dwarf or bush forms of larger
vegetables such as tomatoes,
pumpkins, and winter squash
are most suited to container
gardening.
Theme gardens also are
fun to try. Plant a salad gar-
den with colorful lettuces,
dwarf tomatoes, chives, and
parsley. Maybe try a pizza
garden, with different types
of basil, plus tomatoes and
peppers.
There are endless
possibilities when it comes to
container gardening that can
range from a few simple and
affordable containers to com-
plex and more expensive sys-
tems. Before you get started,
it9s a good idea to brainstorm
what your ideal container gar-
den would look like.
Some herbs that grow
great in containers are: basil,
oregano, cilantro, tarragon,
thyme, lavender, rosemary,
dill and parsley.
Vegetables include egg-
plant, peppers, pole beans,
spinach, lettuce, swiss chard,
cherry tomatoes, vine toma-
toes (hanging), strawberries,
radishes, scallions, beets and
zucchini.
You will love being able to
just walk out onto your deck
and snip fresh lettuce, herbs,
and garden grown tomatoes
to use for dinner.
Our agents are ready to meet
your insurance needs
As life changes, so should your policy
Call or come in today for a
free Farmers Friendly Review
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AUTO • HOME • LIFE • BUSINESS
It’s time to re-pot
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SPRD’s ability to off er
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Plus, they need attention!
I off er houseplant decorating,
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For more details visit
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