At the beginning of the pandemic, we saw lots of trends from Zoom birthday parties, to baking, to binge-watching Tiger King. Those trends have come and gone, but it looks like one of the healthier trends is here to stay: gardening. Gardening’s popularity has skyrocketed since last year, and it doesn’t show any signs of going anywhere. In fact, seed manufacturers are actually having a hard time keeping up with orders. The one downside to gardening is it can take a lot of time and a lot of space. Enter container gardens.
What Are Container Gardens?
Container gardening is exactly what it sounds like – growing plants in a container rather than in the ground. It’s a great way to create a beautiful display on your patio, or if you don’t have a backyard at all, it’s a great alternative. Window boxes even allow people in apartment living situations to become gardeners. Container gardens can be used to grow flowers, fruits, vegetables, or herbs.
You don’t need to get fancy with your containers either. You can buy your typical pot at the store, but you can also use reusable grocery bags, plastic bottles, wine bottles, and more!
Basics of Container Gardening
When planning your container garden, it’s important to consider which plants you want and what size container you want to plant them in. Most plants grow better in large containers because they have more soil, and therefore, stay moist longer. The type of plant and how quickly it grows can help you make these decisions. Also, don’t forget that your containers will become infinitely heavier once they’re packed with soil! So if you’re using a larger container, make sure you’ve put it in a spot where you won’t want to move it.
Another thing to consider is container drainage. After all, you don’t want your plants to get too much water. Many pots have holes in them and if they don’t, you can drill them in yourself. Drainage is easier to manage with outside containers because water is easier to manage if it’s in the yad. However, with container gardens, you could be planting inside. So consider using a cachepot to avoid any water mishaps. A cachepot is a decorative pot to put your planting pot in and catch any excess water. Check out these cute cachepots for sale on Etsy!
Finally, don’t forget to think about soil. When it comes to container gardening, regular garden soil is too dense, so use houseplant soil.
Best Plants for Container Gardening
Many plants can be planted in containers, however, some tend to thrive. Here are some ideas for great container garden plants for beginners.
Vegetables
- Tomatoes
- Squash
- Lettuce
- Peppers
- Arugula
Fruits
- Blueberries
- Raspberries
- Strawberries
Herbs
- Basil
- Thyme
- Mint
- Parsley
Flowers
- Geraniums
- Petunias
- Begonias
- Zinnias
- Verbenas
Gardening Promotes a Healthy Lifestyle
Even though the pandemic is not quite as dire as it was last year, it’s never a bad idea to take up a hobby that promotes a healthy lifestyle. Gardening has a number of health benefits, not to mention, it’s really rewarding to grow your own food! Container gardens are a great way to make gardening more accessible, or they can be used to ease beginners into the huge world of gardening.
“There are certain very stabilizing forces in gardening that can ground us when we are feeling shaky, uncertain, and terrified. It’s these predictable outcomes and predictable rhythms of the garden that are very comforting right now,” Joel Flagler, a professor of plant biology at Rutgers University, told Agweek Magazine. We couldn’t have said it better ourselves!
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