Should You Become a Vegetable Container Gardener?

I’ve learned, from over forty years of working in my garden that it’s all about trial and error; nothing is impossible, just try something else somewhere else. Want to plant a vegetable garden but want room for a lawn and a patio within a small backyard? Don’t even have an area with good soil? The squirrels dig everything up? Consider vegetable container gardening. My containers line one side of the wooden steps to my back porch.

Origins of Vegetable Container Gardening

Did you know that container gardening originated from hanging gardens? The concept of container gardening existed in the ancient city of Babylon, long before Boccaccio wrote about Isabella and her Pot of Basil in 1370. Later it was developed by the Roman and Egyptian peoples. During World War II food was rationed and in the United States the government encouraged its citizens to plant Victory Gardens in backyards, empty lots and even on roof tops. In recent times Education Concerns for Hunger Organization (ECHO) has introduced container garden techniques for impoverished countries like Haiti.(1)

Benefits of Vegetable Container Gardening

Why invest in vegetable container gardening when it’s easier to simply go to a store or the market? First off, container-grown vegetables are often easier to grow, since soil, light and water conditions can be carefully controlled. More importantly perhaps, eating vegetables not painted with pesticides will make you feel better. Personally, a big benefit is that container gardens can be easily transported, are simple to settle down and, when your harvest, everything is fresh. Other benefits include:

• A shortage of landscape for cultivation can be solved with the practice of vegetable container gardening.
• It is very cheap gardening and helpful for people who are below the poverty line.
• Educating children about container gardening will help to reduce poverty, hunger and deforestation in the future.

Costs of Vegetable Container Gardening

Some costs of vegetable container gardening includes the following:

• The cost of containers and trellises.
• The cost of a good quality soil mix. You can save money by creating your own soil mix of one part sphagnum peat moss or compost, one part pasteurized soil, one part vermiculite or perlite, and some composted cow manure.
• Sweat equity: frequent watering is required.
• Trial and error: since the root system is restricted by the size of the container, some vegetables don’t grow well in containers; good bets are tomatoes, cucumbers, snap beans and bell peppers.

Why Be a Vegetable Container Gardener

One hopes that people are on anti-inflammatory diets of fish and bright-colored fruits and vegetables. However, it’s doubtful that most of us will do our own fishing and fruit growing. But why not grow vegetables. And if you’re in an urban environment, why not be a vegetable container gardener. No doubt, it requires effort but the monetary costs are minimal and the benefits enormous. Think about it!

Source:

1. Technology For The Poor. “Urban Agriculture: A Guide to Container Gardens”. Web.