Container vegetable garden plan
22 Stunning Container Vegetable Garden Design Ideas & Tips
Follow these
Container Vegetable Garden Design Ideas to maximize harvest and make your edible garden less boring.Growing a vegetable garden doesn’t mean it has to be boring, dull, and less interesting. On the contrary, it can be very enjoyable and attractive. If you want to know how? Just follow the tips below!
Here are the best vegetables for containers1. Grow Climbers and Vines
shutterstockSupport climbing vegetables and vines and direct them upward with the help of a trellis or a cage or in any other way.
Such plants use vertical space and are abundant in production. Bitter melon (a unique tropical gourd known for its health benefits), gourds, cucumber, pole beans and other beans, Malabar spinach, vine tomatoes, squashes, peas, if you want to try– pumpkin and melons.
2. Choose Colorful Containers
You can brighten up your container vegetable garden by choosing colorful containers to grow your favorite vegetable and herbs.
3. Use Hanging Baskets
Image Credit: HGTVDon’t cast out the idea of growing herbs and vegetables in hanging baskets. Tomatoes, strawberries, many other vegetables, and herbs can be grown in hanging baskets successfully. It also creates space!
Learn more about the best-hanging basket vegetables here4. Start One Pot Vegetable Garden
This one-pot vegetable garden idea is perfect if you don’t have space to set up a container garden. It is also useful for those who have a small balcony or open window that receives full sun. We picked up this idea from the Sunset; read more there!
5. Try this Vertical Lettuce Planter Idea
We love this project done by Bonnie Plants, and why not? You can grow fresh herbs and greens easily in a limited space by following this idea. They have a step-by-step DIY article on this for you to look at, check out!
6. Grow Edible Flowers
To add some interest, color, and beauty, it’s a good idea to grow some edible flowers.
You can use them in salads to garnish your meal or make sharbat.
Flowers like marigolds, calendula, viola, and nasturtiums can be tried. The list is long, and you can discover more names here.
7. Give Space to Herbs
Your container vegetable garden may look incomplete if you don’t grow some herbs. Fresh herbs can enhance the taste of your meal always, so it’s a great idea.
You don’t need to grow all the herbs. Consider adding 2-3 plants that you like most and suit your location: Parsley, thyme, mint, sage, oregano, cilantro, and much more to choose from. A window box, a few small containers, and hanging baskets can also be used.
8. Tomatoes are Must!
Tomatoes are a wonderful and the most important addition to a container vegetable garden. They look beautiful too. Choose 2-3 varieties and grow a few plants to get a bountiful harvest of homegrown tomatoes. Learn about the best tomato varieties for the container in this post.
9. Add Colorful Varieties
Vegetables and herbs with different textures, attractive foliage, and colors can be an excellent addition to your container vegetable garden; they can add visual interest to it.
Red hot pepper, red-stemmed swiss chard, round midnight basil, fine leaf rosemary with other herbs like lemongrass or thyme can make it look appealing. Here’s an interesting post on colorful vegetables for you to see!
10. Use Unique Planters
Use unique planters to provide virtual interest to your container vegetable garden. You can recycle and DIY your own planters or buy a few in unusual shapes and sizes. There are a lot of DIY ideas available on our website for help.
11. Play with the Height
If you don’t want your vegetable garden to look boring, play with the height. Don’t use planters of similar size and height. Instead, group large and small containers together; this will create a visual appeal.
Tip: Group plants according to their height to create a garden-like surrounding effect. To do this, place tall plants in the back and short and low-growing plants like herbs and greens in front.
12. Grow a Citrus Tree
Growing a lemon tree in a pot is not difficult and is probably an intelligent addition to your container vegetable garden.
Here’s our step-by-step post on it!
13. Take the Help of Vertical Gardening
Lettuces in the window boxes in a balconyThe biggest challenge of limited space gardening is limited space itself. To beat this, take the help of Vertical Gardening. Use shoe racks, bookshelves, and plant holders to keep more pots.
If you’re a balcony gardener, railing planters and hanging planters are a must. Besides, there are many other unique vertical gardening ideas available here.
14. Start with the Productive and Easiest Container Vegetables
Try succession planting for continuous harvest and grow the most productive and easiest container vegetables for a successful harvest. Here’s our article on it.
15. Try this One Pot Herb Garden Idea
Image Credit: Southern LivingGrowing herbs is easy to grow along with other vegetables you’re growing. We found this One-pot herb garden idea on Southern Living fascinating for urban gardeners. See the full post here!
16.
Stake ’em Up!Staking and caging are also good ways to grow vegetables like tomatoes easily in containers in a compact spot. You can train the plant to grow vertically, saving a lot of space.
If you have a sunny balcony, patio, or rooftop, all you need is a large container to grow multiple plants together and enjoy a fresh, homegrown harvest.
17. Make a Salad Table Garden
gardenersA Salad Table is an ingenious way to grow plants like spinach and lettuce. Just find a sunny spot and keep the table there, simple! You can easily get them ready-made from the market or make one for yourself at home.
Check out some impressive Salad Table ideas here18. Try Raised Beds
Instead of growing veggies on the ground, you can grow them in raised beds instead. They are easy to maintain this way, compared to a traditional garden–If you have a back problem, want to control the quality of the soil, or looking to improve the drainage.
Here’s everything you need to know about making Raised Beds19.
Go the Hydroponic WayWant to grow vegetables hydroponically? Check out some of the best DIYs here. You can also use PVC pipes for this purpose. One similar DIY is here to watch on YouTube.
View these hydroponic vertical garden ideas here20. Grow Exotic Vegetables
Finding fresh, exotic veggies like Black tomatoes, Romanesco Broccoli, Mexican Sour Gherkin, Dragon Carrot, Red Perilla, and Thai Basil can be a tough job at the supermarket–so why not grow them at your home?
21. Make a Movable Garden
If your garden doesn’t get all the sunlight it needs, DIY a movable garden, which is basically a raised bed on wheels. This way, you can grow vegetables and move them around accordingly, where they get the right sun exposure to thrive well.
Check out some amazing movable garden ideas here22. Save Space by Making a Herb Tower
Yes! You read that right! You can grow not just herbs but some leafy greens as well in a tower form to save space and plant multiple of them together.
Vegetable Container Gardens for Beginners
Container gardening is a fantastic way to grow vegetables, especially when you lack yard space! If you have a small gardening area or only have access to a patio, balcony, driveway, or rooftop, see our guide on guide on vegetable container gardening for beginners!
What is Container Gardening?
Container gardening is growing in pots; this allows those of us who don’t have room for raised beds or a huge garden plot to grow our own food, too.
Benefits of Container Gardening
The great thing about growing in containers is being able to pick up pots and move them where you know they’ll thrive. Even if it’s only one or two pots on the side of your driveway or in the corner of your balcony, gardening in containers allows you to maximize all of your available space.
Container gardening also gives you much more control over your growing. You can have ideal growing medium with the right amount of nutrients.
You’ll certainly have less weeds or even no weeding and can streamline your gardening tasks. Harvesting is much cleaner and easier, too.
A Beginner’s Guide to Container Gardening
Just as with a standard garden bed, consider things such as sunlight exposure, water accessibility, and protection from wind when deciding where to put your containers.
- To maximize your veggie harvest, you’ll want to place your pots in an area that gets full sun (i.e., 6 to 8 hours of sunlight per day). Lettuce, spinach, and other greens can grow well in less sunlight (3 to 5 hours per day), but for fruiting plants like tomatoes, peppers, squash, or eggplant, full sun should be the goal. Southern and western exposures will provide the most sunlight and warmth, while northern and eastern exposures will be shadier and cooler.
- It’s also a good idea to put your pots somewhere that you can reach with a watering hose. Keep in mind that container gardens tend to need more water than standard in-ground gardens, and there’s nothing worse than having to lug a gardening can across your yard a dozen times every morning—and then having to do it again in the evening! Having an easily accessible source of water nearby will save you a lot of time and effort.
- Protecting containers from direct wind keeps them from drying out as much and prevents accidental tipping over. Depending on the size of your containers and the plants you’re growing, they may get top-heavy as the season goes on, which makes them more vulnerable to tipping over in strong winds. Place containers in sheltered locations or plan to secure them (e.g., with cinderblocks, stones, or ropes).
Finally, think about the microclimates that exist on your property. Microclimates are small pockets of space in which the climate of the immediate area doesn’t match the greater climate of your location. For example, an asphalt driveway will hold onto warmth longer than a patch of grass will, so any pots placed on the driveway will be exposed to that extra warmth. On one hand, this could mean that the pots dry out more quickly, but on the other hand, the plants may grow better thanks to the warmer soil.
What Size Pot for Container GardeningThe most fundamental part of container gardening is—surprise—picking the right container! In general, the more space you can offer your plants’ roots, the better they will grow.
Most vegetables need at least 12 inches of soil to grow well, but larger vegetables will require more space. A 5-gallon container is a good size for growing something like a tomato or squash plant, while a smaller container would be perfectly fine for shallow-rooted plants such as lettuce or other greens.
Bear in mind that larger containers will be heavier and harder to move, and may be too heavy for somewhere like a balcony. Small containers, on the other hand, are more mobile and versatile, but also tend to dry out faster, requiring more attention on hot days.
How Large Should Drainage Holes Be?
A container should have a drainage hole or some other way to allow water to pass through it. Water-logged soil promotes bacterial and fungal growth, which will stunt plants’ productivity or kill them outright. Your climate factors into this as well; gardeners in drier areas may want to choose containers that retain more moisture, while those in more humid environments way want containers that allow for more air flow.
If you have a container which is 4 to 6 inches in diameter, then you just need 3 to 6 drainage holes where each is 1/4th inch in size. Larger containers need 6 to 8 drainage holes and the size would be 1/4th. Holes larger than 1/4 inch in diameter will allow too much soil to escape.
What Type of Pot?
From plastic pots and cinderblocks to whiskey barrels and wheelbarrows, almost anything that holds soil can be gardened in. The final important factor to consider is what the container is made out of. These days, containers come in all sorts of types, each with its upsides and downsides. Here are a few of the most popular container materials:
- Plastic: Plastic pots come in all sorts of shapes, colors, and sizes, which makes them one of the most popular choices for container gardening. Plastic pots also tend to be the cheapest option. They are relatively lightweight, hold in moisture well, and are easy to clean and reuse for many gardening seasons down the line.
If you’re growing edibles, be sure to choose pots made out of food-grade plastic so that chemicals won’t leach into the soil.
- Ceramic (terra-cotta): Ceramic pots are another popular choice. They tend to be more decorative than plastic pots, but are also quite a bit heavier—especially when filled with soil. Ceramic pots come in glazed or unglazed styles; the main difference being that glazed pots hold in more moisture than unglazed pots. The great thing about ceramic pots is that the clay is porous, which allows some level of air and water to flow through it. This ensures that soil doesn’t get overly wet, but also means that soil in (unglazed) clay pots will dry out more quickly than in plastic pots. Additionally, ceramic pots are susceptible to cracking in cold weather, so they should be emptied and stored in a sheltered area through the winter.
- Fabric: Fabric pots have become more popular in recent years thanks to their lightweight nature and the breathability they offer.
They often come with handles, too, which makes moving them around very easy. Plus, they can be washed and reused fairly easily. The fabric allows air and water to easily flow through it, which is beneficial to plants’ roots, as they are encouraged to become more fibrous and, therefore, more efficient at taking in water and nutrients. One downside to fabric pots is that they dry out rather quickly, so consistent watering will be required.
Again, almost anything can be used as a container, so get creative! Hanging baskets make good use of extra space, and herbs, cherry tomatoes, and strawberries grown at eye level can be easily tended and harvested. Use whiskey barrels (a wooden half-barrel can yield an amazing amount of food), buckets, baskets, boxes, bath- and other tubs, window boxes, and troughs—anything that holds soil. Just be sure that it has drainage holes in the bottom and is a size that you can manage.
Watch the video below for more information on choosing the right container:
The Best Soil for Container Gardening
In order to grow healthy plants, you need healthy soil. Plants in containers need the best possible nutrients, aeration, and drainage in order to encourage healthy root growth and to produce a good harvest.
Do not use soil from the garden! Most garden soils are too heavy, can become easily waterlogged and compacted, and harbor disease and insects. Instead, use a “soilless” potting mix that’s specifically formulated for use in containers. It will be quick-draining and lightweight, and shouldn’t contain any diseases or pests.
Soilless potting mixes tend to consist of some combination of peat (or coconut coir), perlite, and vermiculite, as well as other additives such as ground limestone and granulated fertilizers to provide nutrients. Here’s how to make your own soilless mix at home.
Got compost? Humus is a fantastic material to add to your container mix, as it contains plenty of nutrients and loosens the media.
Read all about making compost!
How to Water Containers
Because they are more exposed to sun and wind, containers tend to dry out more quickly than traditional gardens or raised beds. Especially during the hottest days of summer, many plants grown in pots must be watered as often as twice a day!
Containers can be watered in a number of ways—hoses, watering cans, drip irrigation. Choose a method that makes the most sense for you and the size of your garden.
A few watering pointers:
- Water in the morning (or as early as possible). Ideally, container plants should be watered as early in the day as possible. Watering early in the day provides plants with enough moisture to get them through the hotter midday hours. It also ensures that their leaves dry off by the time that night falls; having moisture on leaves at night can encourage the spread of disease.
- Water deeply. Plants need water at their roots, so simply spraying the surface of the soil with the hose isn’t enough.
Water plants—especially those in containers—deeply and thoroughly to ensure that water reaches down to their roots. After a watering, the soil should be saturated and water should run out the bottom of the pot. Alternatively, try watering from the bottom: Place a tray under the pot and fill it with water. The soil will absorb the water through the drainage hole(s). Repeat until no more water is absorbed, then dump out any excess water from the tray.
- Don’t water too frequently! It may sound counterintuitive, but watering a plant with a small amount of water very frequently is worse than watering with a large amount infrequently. Frequent, shallow waterings encourage plants to develop weak, shallow roots, while infrequent, deep waterings encourage them to put down deeper, healthier roots. Most plants can tolerate—and actually benefit from—having a little break between deep waterings, so don’t be afraid to let the soil dry out a little bit between waterings.
Other key things to keep in mind are the size of the pot and the weather. Smaller pots will dry out a lot more quickly than larger pots, and will require more frequent waterings. Hot, sunny days are naturally more drying than cool, cloudy ones, so expect to water more during heat waves. Overall, pay attention to the speed at which your container soil dries out as well as how your plants react; you will soon get a sense for how often you need to water!
One way to keep container plants adequately cool and moist during hot summer days is to double-pot them: Place a small pot inside a larger one and fill the space between them with sphagnum moss or crumpled newspaper. When watering the plant, also soak the filler between the pots. Caution: be sure to check your double-potted plants often, as the extra layer can also be a nice spot for pests to hide!
Fertilizing Containers
Water flows through containers quickly, flushing nutrients out with it.
This can be a good thing, as it will flush out any buildup of salts in the soil. However, this also means that it’s necessary to replenish those nutrients by feeding container plants more regularly than those grown in the ground.
In general, we recommend adding a slow-release fertilizer to your potting mix at the start of the gardening season. This can be done by either mixing it into your potting mix at planting, or by sprinkling fertilizer on top of the potting mix (i.e., “top-dressing”) right after planting. This will give your plants a good head start on growth.
While they’re actively growing, flowering, and fruiting, use a liquid fertilizer to feed container plants at least twice a month, following the instructions on the label. It’s always a good idea to test your soil first, if possible, to gauge whether or not additional fertilizer is necessary. An occasional application of fish emulsion or compost will add trace elements to container soil as well.
To keep vegetable plants growing, feed them organic soil amendments, like liquid seaweed, fish emulsion, or manure tea. Read more about fertilizing container plants here!
Supporting Container Plants
While we won’t discourage you from chatting with your plants every now and then, in this case, we mean physical support. Support tall or climbing vegetables with trellises, stakes, netting, twine, or cages. Here’s how to build your own trellis or wooden supports.
A teepee of bamboo stakes will hold pole beans or snap peas well. Cucumbers trained to climb up a nylon mesh fence will develop fruit that hang down and grow straight. To avoid damaging the plants or their roots, put supports in place at the time of planting.
Which Vegetables Are Good for Containers Gardening?
When it comes to being grown in containers, some veggies do actually do better than others. Vegetables that can be easily transplanted are typically great candidates, as they will adjust easily to the potted environment.
Transplants can be purchased from local nurseries or started at home.
In general, gravitate toward vegetable varieties that are considered “dwarf” or “container,” as they tend to stay smaller and are better suited to the container lifestyle. Check in your favorite seed catalogs; many list varieties of vegetables bred specifically for growing in containers. Among tomatoes, for example, choose “bush” or “determinate” varieties, as they will grow to a set height and won’t get unwieldy in a container.
Attractive in window boxes, edible flowers such as nasturtiums, calendula, and signet marigolds also add color to the plate!
To maximize space and thus your harvest, try planting low-growers and tall climbers together in the same container. The climbers will eagerly scramble up a trellis, while the small plants spread around their base. You’ll hardly need to weed because there won’t be any room for weeds to gain a foothold, and during the height of summer, some low-growers (leafy greens, for example) will thrive in the shade provided by the taller plants.
Mix quick-maturing plants, such as lettuce or radishes, with longer-growing ones, like tomatoes or broccoli. Learn more about growing salad greens in containers here!
Group plants with similar needs for sun and water, such as pole beans, radishes, and lettuce; cucumber, bush beans, and beets; tomatoes, basil, and onions; and peas and carrots.
Check out our video for more information on which plants will thrive in your container garden:
Finally, here are some suggested vegetables for containers, along with recommended container sizes and varieties:
Beans, snap
Container: 5-gallon window box
Varieties: Bush ‘Blue Lake’, Bush ‘Romano’, ‘Tender Crop’
Broccoli
Container: 1 plant per 5 gallon pot, 3 plants per 15-gallon tub
Varieties: ‘DeCicco’, ‘Green Comet’
Carrots
Container: 5-gallon window box at least 12 inches deep
Varieties: ‘Danvers Half Long’, ‘Short ‘n Sweet’, ‘Tiny Sweet’
Cucumbers
Container: 1 plant per 1-gallon pot
Varieties: ‘Patio Pik’, ‘Pot Luck’, ‘Spacemaster’
Eggplant
Container: 1 plant per 5-gallon pot
Varieties: ‘Black Beauty’, ‘Ichiban’, ‘Slim Jim’
Lettuce
Container: 5-gallon window box
Varieties: ‘Ruby’, ‘Salad Bowl’
Onions
Container: 5-gallon window box
Varieties: ‘White Sweet Spanish’, ‘Yellow Sweet Spanish’
Peppers
Container: 1 plant per 3-gallon pot, 5 plants per 15-gallon tub
Varieties: ‘Cayenne’, ‘Long Red’, ‘Sweet Banana’, ‘Wonder’, ‘Yolo’
Radishes
Container: 5-gallon window box
Varieties: ‘Cherry Belle’, ‘Icicle’
Tomatoes
Container: 1 plant per 5-gallon pot
Varieties: ‘Early Girl’, ‘Patio’, ‘Small Fry’, ‘Sweet 100’, ‘Tiny Tim’
See our individual Vegetable Growing Guides for advice on growing other common vegetables.
How to do it right: Make an ornamental garden
Just a couple of decades ago, a garden was a great help for the family budget. But now gardening is more of a hobby. Growing your own vegetables is unprofitable, labor intensive, hectic and responsible. However, it is very interesting! I will tell you what is important to know about creating an ornamental garden.
► About the author: Oksana Razumovskaya, the chief landscape architect of our studio, has been professionally caring for gardens for over 27 years.
BUGAEV Parks & Gardens
What is the difference between an ordinary vegetable garden and an ornamental one
A vegetable garden is a relatively small piece of land, intended primarily for growing vegetables. It may also contain berry bushes and fruit trees. In the village and garden associations, the garden is usually located in the immediate vicinity of a residential building.
A vegetable garden can be utilitarian: rows of beds, above them arcs with a film (greenhouse). And sometimes the garden is decorative. For example, container, when vegetables are planted in beautiful containers and decorate terraces and patios in the manner of flower pots. Or in the form of a rockery, using stones and gravel from backfilling - herbs are usually grown on this. 9Ol000 What is an ornamental garden
Most often, by “decorative” we mean a garden with a high level of improvement: paved paths, “capital” beds with borders, original planting layout. Another important condition is the presence of annual and perennial flowers in the amount of up to 5–10% of the total number of plants in the garden. These are vegetable and other plants that are grown not for food, but for their beauty. For example, decorative sunflowers, corn, tomatoes, some types of lettuce, etc. Gardening stores offer a wide range of such plants - for every taste and color.
Important: I strongly do not recommend planting ornamental plants with inedible fruits on the beds! The fact that they grow in the garden can be misleading not only for children, but also for adults.
Reasonable garden
The place for a vegetable garden is sunny
In central Russia, it is important to place any vegetable garden on a well-lit part of the site. Watch for a while how exactly the sun illuminates your allotment at different times of the day. Consider the transparency of fences on the border with neighbors.
If you plan to combine a vegetable garden and an orchard, it is better to arrange trees and shrubs in tiers, focusing on the south (as in the figure above). The tallest fruit trees should be in the background, and the garden - the lowest element - in front. Fruit bushes and low trees can be placed between them. This will allow all tiers of the garden and vegetable garden to receive their share of sunlight and heat.
RELATED…
- How to: Mark out a vegetable garden in a garden
- How to do it right: Create a vegetable garden in an “uncomfortable” place
Smart garden
Despite the fact that our vegetable garden also has a decorative function, stylistically it belongs to the economic zone of the site.
Therefore, you should not place it on the main house adjoining territory. Not the best option would be the location of the garden in the center of the site, glade or lawn - this will lead to division and, as a result, a visual reduction in the site as a whole.
Dimensioning
The basis of any vegetable garden is a garden bed: a strip of dug up land allocated for planting. During the season, gardeners spend more than one hour in the beds - they dig and loosen the ground, sow seeds or plant seedlings, weed and water the plants. To work comfortably, you need to create comfortable conditions in advance. Based on many years of experience, we have determined the following parameters for ourselves.
LLC "SUCCESSFUL PROJECT"
- The maximum bed width is 80–100 cm.
- The height of the bed depends on the age and physical capabilities of gardeners. It will be more convenient for the elderly and inactive people to work on raised beds.
At the same time, it should be taken into account that the soil in such beds freezes faster in winter than in those located directly on the ground, and in summer it will require additional watering. - Most vegetable crops require 20 cm of fertile soil.
Smart Garden
- The minimum width between beds is 40 cm.0063
- We advise you to frame all beds with boards - it is much more convenient to carry out agrotechnical work with them and water loose fertile soil. The material of the boards must be moisture resistant and environmentally friendly - a board with a thickness of 30 mm is suitable.
Intelligent garden
Ornamental garden is a combination of beds and paths. It would seem that it's easier. However, the development of a garden plan is a complex creative work that takes into account a number of restrictions, both technical and decorating.
The most common mistake is to create beds more than a meter wide for the sake of a “beautiful layout”: in the future, this will not allow you to carry out agricultural work on them accurately. It is important to adhere to a rational balance: the area of \u200b\u200bthe beds should significantly exceed the area of \u200b\u200bthe tracks.
In the picture: options for a compositional solution for planning an ornamental garden
What else can be placed on an ornamental garden
Fence. This is not about fencing each garden bed, but about making it difficult for pets - dogs, chickens, rabbits, etc. to enter the garden. After all, they can damage the landing. The main requirements for the fence are light transmission (should not interfere with the access of sunlight to the beds) and compliance with the style of the design of the entire small garden.
Outbuildings and equipment - greenhouse, greenhouse, compost heap, tanks for heating and settling water used for watering plants, and others.
An orchard, together with a vegetable garden, can become the core of the economic zone of a small garden.
Smart Garden
Tip: The dimensions of the greenhouse, its length and width, should be in proportion to the size of the garden. Consider the agricultural technology of growing vegetables (cucumbers and tomatoes are grown separately). Conduct electricity to the greenhouse - for the possible connection of ground heating and lighting. It is advisable to orient the greenhouse with an elongated side from east to west - to obtain maximum sunlight.
RELATED…
Sunny house: A greenhouse can be beautiful
Staab & Olmsted LLC - Landscape Architecture and F
What to plant
Indoor varieties should be self pollinated. For example, tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, eggplants, etc. are suitable for the Moscow region.
For open ground, the assortment of seedlings can be supplemented with cabbage, zucchini, squash and many others.
Lettuces, onions, parsley, dill, cilantro and other plants are suitable for sowing in the ground. Moreover, sowing and repetition frequency depend on the germination time. For example, parsley and carrots sprout for a long time and are sown one-time and early. And dill, cilantro and various salads - several times with an interval of 2-3 weeks. Cucumbers can also be grown at intervals.
A good option for early planting is radishes, which can withstand surface frosts and cold nights. And crops such as cucumber should be planted in the ground when the nights become warmer. To preserve crops during surface frosts, seedlings are covered with spunbond.
Smart Garden
Ornamental Garden Step-by-Step Plan
1. Examine the scale garden design in detail. When transferring the project to the planned territory, determine in advance the area and boundaries of the beds and paths.
It is convenient to make markings with pegs, to mark the lines of the sides with a stretched twine or tape.
2. Install the bead bases at the junction of the beds and paths. If the bases are made of boards, pre-treat them with an antiseptic or coated waterproofing.
3. Dig a "trough" under the base of the tracks. Fill it in layers with sand and gravel. Crushed stone is drainage, rainwater and excess water during irrigation will drain into it.
Smart Garden
4. Coat the 30 mm boards that will serve as the borders for the beds with an antiseptic. After installation, fix the finishing strips on them with self-tapping screws.
Consider the photo below - the board consists of several boards (internal pine, external decorative and piping covering their joint from above)
Reasonable Garden
5.
Lay wooden logs on top of the rubble. And already on them - a terrace board covered with an antiseptic (in our project it matches the board).
6. Fill the beds with fertile soil mixed with local soil, level.
7. Sow and plant vegetables. Your decorative garden is ready!
Smart Garden
SEE ALSO…
How to: Make a flower garden… on cardboard
YOUR TURN…
Tell me if there is an ornamental garden in your yard. What would you advise beginner gardeners to consider when planning such a garden?
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How to make a mobile garden
A mobile garden or flower garden is a great idea if you don't have a separate piece of land. With a compact format for growing plants, the fight against diseases and pests is simplified. At the same time, compositions from containers and pots will decorate the patio, veranda or balcony.
Mobile garden or flower garden
A mobile container garden can be set up outdoors, on a terrace or even on a balcony. For plants, choose plastic or galvanized containers. In this case, the harvest on a huge scale cannot be harvested, but fresh vegetables or herbs will always be on the dining table. Flowers grown in mobile containers will decorate any landscape.
The device will need containers with trays that are needed to collect water. The substrate can be prepared independently or you can buy a ready-made mixture in the store. For growing crops in a limited space, vegetable varieties with a compact root system are chosen. It is also worth considering the location of the containers, as different types of plants in the open field and on the terrace require a different approach.
Portable garden or garden
For a portable mobile garden or vegetable garden, any containers and reservoirs will be useful. These can be old clay or plastic pots, barrels, tubs, jugs, vases, or even chest of drawers.
The larger and taller the plant, the more space there should be in the container. Another prerequisite is the device for water disposal and drainage. It is necessary to establish a water drainage system, and subsequently make sure that it is not clogged with soil or debris.
The most undemanding and easy to grow are vegetables and flowers. The small size allows them to feel comfortable in a limited space, which cannot be said about fruit plants. For container growing, slow-growing columnar varieties, dwarf trees and small berry bushes are chosen.
For each variety, select a specific soil mixture or use a universal one. Each plant has its own requirements for light and humidity. It is better to collect plants that have similar needs in one area. This will turn out a more integral composition and you will not have to arrange separate conditions for each vegetable or fruit.
A general requirement for all plant species is the renewal of the topsoil.
In the spring, a layer of soil is removed and a new mixture is added. Shrubs and mini-trees are transplanted into larger containers every 3-4 years. For the winter, garden containers are insulated - then the plants will be able to stand outdoors until spring.
Mobile box garden
Bed boxes can be made of wood, metal, concrete, plastic, wicker or a combination of materials. Before you make or buy boxes, you need to decide on the plants for growing. Different varieties and types of plants perceive light, humidity and limited space in different ways.
Plastic or vinyl plant beds can affect the composition of the soil, over time it leaches and reduces fertility. The most environmentally friendly are boxes made of wood or vines. They can be made independently from improvised materials, old furniture or pallets. The tree must be treated before use, otherwise the wood will get wet and the beds will collapse. For processing, use copper sulfate, instead of chemical impregnations.
Portable plastic bag garden
The most budgetary and mobile way of growing garden crops is beds made of plastic bags. Plants are not threatened by any pests with this method of cultivation, neither weeds nor heat. For inexperienced gardeners and gardeners, ready-made soil mixtures in bags can be purchased at the store.
A pre-planned planting plan will simplify the choice of substrate. The standard dimensions of a polyethylene container are 35x95 cm. This space is enough for 2-3 medium-sized plants. Shallow rooted plants are best off cutting off the top of the bag to create a tub. It can be cucumbers, tomatoes, peppers or zucchini.
For root crops, the bag is best used in a horizontal position. When growing different types of plants, make holes in height at different levels. This will be especially true for climbing vines. When self-filling the bags with the substrate, it is necessary to remember about the water drainage device and the expanded clay drainage layer.
Creating vertical beds
The vertical way of growing vegetables and flowers saves space and beautifies the garden. Such a bed can be hung on any surface, whether it is a wall of a country house, a fence or a veranda railing. A less time-consuming method of device is the purchase of ready-made systems. However, these designs are not cheap.
To save the family budget, the beds can be arranged independently. On a vertical surface, mount metal fasteners on which to place containers with plants. These can be ordinary clay pots, bottles, PVC pipes or boxes. Wooden pallets, placed up along the wall, can become the basis for creating beds.
Tanks for growing vegetables and herbs must have gutters to drain excess water and a drainage bottom layer. Ready soil mixture will help competent arrangement of beds. In this design, a variety of greens grows well. The main advantage of the vertical device is its mobility. The beds can be arranged even on an ordinary city balcony.
