{"id":13452,"date":"2011-09-14T11:53:48","date_gmt":"2011-09-14T17:53:48","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blog.sustainablog.org\/?p=13452"},"modified":"2011-09-14T11:53:48","modified_gmt":"2011-09-14T17:53:48","slug":"container-gardening","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/articles\/container-gardening\/","title":{"rendered":"Container Gardening: a Primer"},"content":{"rendered":"<p style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/container-gardening-cups.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13453\" title=\"container-gardening-buckets\" src=\"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/container-gardening-cups.jpg\" alt=\"container gardening in small buckets\" width=\"486\" height=\"354\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/container-gardening-cups.jpg 540w, https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/container-gardening-cups-300x218.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 486px) 100vw, 486px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Container gardening is a great way to increase <a href=\"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/square-foot-gardening-plans-layouts-tips\/\">limited space vegetable production<\/a>, make toxic land useable, and create small-scale aquatic ecosystems. The <a href=\"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/recycled-garden-planters\/\">containers<\/a> used can often be obtained for free as well, such as <a href=\"http:\/\/www.simplybathtubs.com\/\">bathtubs<\/a>, baskets, toilets, wagons, buckets, or barrels. Be creative with what you have available.<\/p>\n<h3>Reasons for Container Gardening<\/h3>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Moveable:<\/strong>\u00a0If you don\u2019t have much light available to you (apartments), container gardening allows you to move your plants throughout the day so they get enough sunlight.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Toxic\/No Soil:<\/strong>\u00a0If your soil is contaminated with pollutants, or you don\u2019t have any soil due to concrete or an apartment balcony, containers are a great way to allow your garden to thrive without having to be rooted to the earth.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Vertical Space:<\/strong> Containers allow plants to be grown anywhere that the weight of the container can be supported and the plants get enough sunlight. I\u2019ve seen little pots hung from clotheslines, or lining the walls of a deck. Again, a little creativity goes a long way.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h3>Uses<\/h3>\n<p>When you find a container to use, your first decision is if you want to grown aquatic or good-ol\u2019 land vegetables.<\/p>\n<h3>Aquatic Gardening<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/water-gardening.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-13454\" title=\"water gardening\" src=\"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/water-gardening.jpg\" alt=\"water gardening in wading pools\" width=\"275\" height=\"255\" \/><\/a>If you\u2019ll be growing aquatic vegetables, make sure, obviously, that your container holds water. Be sure to place your container in a place that gets at least 6 hours per day of sun, as most aquatic plants require full sun. Also, using dark containers discourages algae growth.<strong> <\/strong> Finally, if you\u2019re using a large container, pick your spot carefully, because you won\u2019t be able to move it. For example, if you fill a bathtub with 75 gallons of water, the water alone weighs 600lbs (8lbs\/g).<\/p>\n<h3>Soil<\/h3>\n<p>The big things here are to drill holes in the bottom of the container so that it drains. You don\u2019t want large amounts of water sitting in the bottom of your container creating anaerobic environments. Other than that, pick a good medium to grow your plants in, put it in the pot, then plant!<\/p>\n<h3>City Codes<\/h3>\n<p>Make sure it looks nice because some city codes will consider an old bathtub or toilet in the yard the same as having junked cars lying around. Generally it\u2019s only an issue if your neighbor complains, and, depending on how much work the city codes people have, it may never even garner a response. But in the interest of neighborly love, just make sure it looks nice.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/container-garden-car.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-full wp-image-13455\" title=\"container garden car\" src=\"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/container-garden-car.jpg\" alt=\"car used as container garden\" width=\"450\" height=\"298\" srcset=\"https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/container-garden-car.jpg 450w, https:\/\/sustainablog.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2011\/09\/container-garden-car-300x198.jpg 300w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 450px) 100vw, 450px\" \/><\/a><\/p>\n<p>So find yourself a container and pick some plants to grow. Experiment, have fun, and enjoy your bounty.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Resources<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/journeytoforever.org\/garden_con.html\">Journey to Forever&#8217;s Container Gardening Resources Page<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"http:\/\/urbanext.illinois.edu\/watergarden\/container.cfm\">The University of Illinois Extension&#8217;s Water Gardening Page<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em>Jeremy Jones runs a <a href=\"http:\/\/jeremyjon.es\/design\">Missouri web design<\/a> studio and loves all things permaculture.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Container gardening is a great way to increase limited space vegetable production, make toxic land useable, and create small-scale aquatic ecosystems. The containers used can often be obtained for free&nbsp;[ &hellip; ]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":51,"featured_media":13453,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24],"tags":[5354,19,23,698,5355],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.0 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Container Gardening Guide: Bathtub, porch &amp; bucket gardening<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Got limited space, or toxic soil? 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