Organic Container Gardening – Make The Most Of Your Space
Organic container gardening is the solution if you want fresh organic veggies and flowers but don’t have a garden space. Organic container gardening fits just about anywhere, and it’s even easier than having an organic garden plot. Container gardening will allow you to have plenty of healthy organic produce to feed your family. Basically, the same practices you would apply to traditional gardening can be used with organic container gardening.
Container
Container gardening is a great innovation of gardening. It is limited only by your imagination. If you have somewhere to put them you can grow almost anything in containers. Container gardens are perfect for small yards, balconies and wherever you want to add color and interest. Container gardening follows the same principle as potted plants, but you can grow more than just ferns and flowers. Container plants are widely used in today s residential and commercial urban landscapes. Container gardening offers a wonderful opportunity to allow your creative imagination to run wild.
The first thing to deal with is the container. Containers should be large enough to give plants plenty of root space for healthy growth. Pots and containers that won’t fall apart when they get wet and that will also drain properly work best for organic container gardening. It might be natural, such as a clay or wooden container, or you can use an old wheelbarrow, plastic carton or bucket. It is important that your chosen container can drain because most plants dislike being over-watered. If the container does not have holes in it, you can make some with a drill or knitting needle, depending what the container is made out of. You can grow whatever you like in it, depending on the size of your chosen container.
Once you have your plants in their containers the next step is to ensure that you place the container where it will get optimal light for the health of your plant. Organic garden design must be well thought out while keeping a few priorities in mind, for instance some plants and vegetables require more water than others and organizing them in the right arrangement will provide just that. If you are trying to make an aesthetically pleasing arrangement of containers and plants, you can adjust the containers to be at different heights by hanging them from the ceiling or placing them on supports. You can even grow many plants in hanging baskets.
Soil
Another important component of a container garden is the soil. Living, organic soil is very important in organic container gardening. Choose a soil mix that contains sphagnum moss and peat. A good organic gardening practice is to feed the soil each season with nutrients (using compost) so that the soil can provide those nutrients to the roots of the crops being grown. The soil must be worked with at the start and end of each growing season to ensure an abundant output of healthy organic plants and flowers. You can buy special organic container mix at many garden centers, or you can make your own by amending dirt from your garden for container gardening; simply mix together one part garden soil, one part compost and one part sand.
Plants
Ideally, you should use organic seed and/or plants for organic container gardening. If this is your first venture into container gardening, try to choose drought resistant plants. Over watering and under watering are both bad for the plants. Over watering prevents the plants from creating deep root systems. Most container plantings tend to dry out quickly and will need very regular watering; during hot spells they may even need to be watered twice a day.
Compost
Composting does not have to be hard work. Anything that was not produced or manufactured chemically can become compost. Natural wastes such as leaves, grass, bushes, flowers, animal manure and other broken down organic material are usually the components of compost. Inside the home, collect vegetable peelings, egg shells and the like and add those to your compost too. After harvesting your crop, dump the waste into your compost pile so that it can be recycled for later.
Conclusion
If you love to grow fresh vegetables and beautiful flowers but have limited space, organic container gardening is a good solution to your problem. Organic container gardening fits just about anywhere, and it’s easier than having a garden plot. So simple that anyone can try their hand at organic container gardening. Gardening is a delightful hobby for both those who enjoy working in the soil as well as those who just like admiring their beauty from a distance.
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