Are you participating in the community container garden? I sure hope so! But even if you’re not, it’s still important to know what sized pot goes with what kind of edible plants. Tomatoes will not be happy living in a 10 inch pot for the entire summer. Nope. No way! But chives? They’re much more tolerant of tighter living quarters.
Affordability is also important, and to that end, I want to let you know about a discount cod to get 10% off any of the planters at MasterGardening.com. Just use LOTBplanters at checkout. Be sure to get your orders in quick, as the code runs out on April 18th. I get nothing out of the deal other than the satisfaction of knowing you guys saved some money. Happy shopping!
- Tomatoes – Think 5 gallon bucket size. At least!
- Sunflowers – For a dwarf variety such as Sunspot, you’ll want a pot that is at least 12 inches tall and wide (for one plant).
- Cucumbers – Polite varieties like Spacemaster also need a pot that is at least 12 inches tall and wide. The bigger the pot, the better though.
- Basil – You can get a pretty good-sized basil plant from a pot as shallow as a typical window box. I’d say you need a pot that is at minimum, 8 inches deep.
- Chives – You could probably get away with a pot that is only 6 inches deep, but I’d try to use a pot that is closer to 8 inches if possible.
Since MasterGardening.com was so nice to offer the discount, I went ahead and found some of their pots that will work great for edibles…
Of course, the ever popular Earth Box is a great option. Pam Baxter reviewed the Earth Box in a guest post awhile back. You’ll be able to fit several edible plants in one Earth Box. Earth Box’s manufacturer suggests that you can grow two tomato plants in one Earth Box, or four cucumbers, or six herbs (how pretty would the purple basil and chives look if you planted them every other one, so you had a purple and green checkerboard?). But I bet you could grow one tomatoes, one cucumber, and three herbs (two basils and one chives or two chives and one basil–your pick). Then you’d just need a pot for the sunflowers. You could get another Earth Box and fill it with them! 
Another great type of pot that I can personally vouch for are Smart Pots. They are made out of fabric, which allows air to penetrate the roots, keeping your plants super healthy and happy.
Yet another type of pot that would be perfect for basil or chives are over the rail type planters. Pictured above is the Greenbo planter. I have three and am very happy with them. They are such a great space-saver because you don’t use one square inch of your balcony’s floor space. The pots are too shallow for tomatoes, cukes, or sunflowers though.
What kinds of pots do you plan to use in your edible garden this year?
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We came up with a new system this year. All of the herbs are in terra cotta since they like to stay a little hotter and dryer. Tomatos and peppers are in deep plastic trough style orange containers. If it’s edible, it’s in orange. All flowers are in the green plastic pots ranging from 8″ to 14″. The sunflowers go right into the ground in a small 2′ by 2′ space that I dug up next to the patio pavers. (Sssshhhhh! Don’t tell management!)
T R — That sounds like a good solution, and I like it! Right now, however, I’m combing through a fairly large collection of baskets and wooden boxes I’ve been saving –for what?!?! They, too, are going onto the deck with all of my “orange and green” pots, to be filled with whatever plant, flower or veg, that happens to fit and looks good. And I’ve created more storage space, to boot!
I have a Greenbo pot sitting in my office and was wondering what to plant in it- now I think I will plant it with herbs, great suggestion!
We are using the Smart Pots in our company garden and are really happy with them. Our seedlings were transplanted into Smart Pots and biodegradable pots. The Smart Pot transplants are twice the size of the other guys. We are also growing strawberries in them since they can be converted into pocket planters!
If anyone has questions about our product line or using the coupon code I would be happy to help!
I was wondering if spacing rules are the same for containers as they are for plants in the ground. For examample, the recommended size for tomato containers is 5 gallons. Can I plant two tomatoes in a 20Lx16W inch 18 gallon container or do the plants need more space between them?
I think you would be unhappy, as would the tomatoes, if you tried to squeeze them in together. My vote is for separate containers.
Kristen–You can squish things together more than is generally recommended, but I think 16 inches apart is too close for tomatoes. A little overlap is OK, but when their leaves overlap too much, they tend to get diseases and become pest infested.
I saw a study where tomatoes were grown in both 5 gallon and 20 gallon buckets and treated equally, and (although one plant in the 20 gallon produced more than one plant in the 5 gallon), four plants in individual 5 gallon buckets produced more tomatoes than four plants together in one 20 gallon. So it was the same amount of total space per plant, but they were happier when they had their own containers.
We are on a strict budget since moving to SoCal but really wanted to spruce up our patio (read, concrete slab). I was lucky enough to score 25 terra cotta pots of various sizes on Craigs List for $10. A little paint made them look amazing!
Well. Gulp. My neighbor bought me a Topsy-Turvy tomato planter. Because I like her and want to make her feel good about the gift, I am going to give it the ol’ college try. The growing space does not seem enough to me, so I bought a variety called “Patio” that is supposed to be perfect for containers. My hope is that it will enjoy the relatively small diameter of this new and interesting way to grow my favorite vehicle for basil. Off to get more potting soil. Will post a photo when it is hanging. (Wish me luck.)
Big Lots has 3 sizes of inexpensive plastic pots. The largest is big enough for a tomato plant. I buy the light grey ones and spray them with Krylon bronze paint for plastic. Our driveway gets the best sun, so they’ll be living there this summer.
We had are first Texas storm last night with winds up to 90 MPH on my west balcony!! My community seedling took a big toss around. This morning I set them back into their holders but all my markers are gone with the winds! I took pictures of the damage around my townhouse and the clean up. Hopefully after a few day under the grown lights and some TLC I’ll be able to tell what is what.
Those over the rail planters are *fantastic*! I could grow something that hangs down, and get more space out of the vertical. Sadly, my landlord has some crazy strict clauses in the amended lease he made me sign if i wanted to stay here. Not only can I not wear heels indoors, I can’t have anything out of sorts on my patio, blankets hung out to dry or anything! He’s threatened me more than once with a fine for my garden being slightly messy during planting season
That stinks, Kimberly. My HOA has lame rules about balcony railing planters, but they aren’t enforced. Even the board president has them on his railing. :-/
Kimberly, I forget that other people have to deal with unreasonable landlords. I wish I could clone mine for you. He is, at this moment, putting together some angle iron that will enable me to hang this silly Topsy-Turvy tomato planter from a post on my porch. Last year he drilled the holes for the over-the-railing planters I bought at Walmart. We call him St. Chuck.
Laura: I’m officially envious. I live in an apartment complex with only like 20 apartments, all single story. But this guy owns 3 buildings in the neighborhood and he lets them go to crap – our pools been closed by the health dept for a year, paint is peeling, etc
For some reason, he spent money on a one-time gardener to plant a bunch of fruit trees in the central grassy area, which has now turned into dropped fruit attracting animals. But he’s ok with fining ME for having a mess on my patio 
My major score last summer was a craigslist find. I had been trolling craigslist for pots and other used gardening supplies for a while. Then I saw a posting about a landscape companies closeout sale, and scored big. So I’d suggest keeping an eye on craigslist for finding containers on the cheap.
I’ve also noticed that spring and early summer is a good time for finding used nursery pots of all kinds left curbside in the city. Seems like after people plant a big shrub or whatever that they’ve just bought, those standard big ol black nursery pots get left on the sidewalk. That’s what I just planted seed potatoes in!
Honestly landlords should be super thrilled when they get tenants that grow! I am trying to find some second hand pots right now but no one seems to be selling here, Ireland isn’t big on recycling apparently! gah!!!
I’m using a bunch of basic terracotta planters that I used leftover paint samples to make pretty for herbs, some basic $2.50 5 gallon white buckets for tomatoes and cucumbers, and large plastic window boxes(for beans/peas) and hanging baskets(for strawberries) purchased for 2 or 3 dollars a piece from Dollar General.
Do burlap coffee sacks make good pots? Might they be comparable to the Smart Pots? A recycling company is selling them at a reasonable price and offer 3 “grades” of sack, one of which is for planters –heavier weight to hold the soil better and last longer, they say. Smart pots probably last longer, but, I’m wondering if the burlap would give similar benefits re the soil aeration?
I thought this aeration would be not so good, actually – i thought roots need to be in soil, darkness.. and dont’ they dry out easily?
thanks!
Rachel–Sure! If they’re thin, double bag them. But I think coffee bags could be a great (and cute!) pot.
Thanks! Can you explain the root pruning qualities of smart pots? Does this mean that roots avoid the edges of smart pots because of the air? Is this beneficial in some way? Dont’ they dry out easily? Thanks again!
Nevermind! I found a FAQ about smart pots here:
http://www.smartpots.com/faq
thanks for mentioning smart pots! very interesting. I am just moving to a place with a deck and would like to have lots of plants, and this info will help a lot. Best wishes.
I am definitely growing in containers this year;one side of my house gets a lot of sun but it’s just a narrow strip of sidewalk! I have a long window box for lettuces. I like the idea of herbs in terra cotta pots, I have plenty of those! Planting basil, dill and parsley this year. I find used pots in peoples’ trash all the time, and at yard sales. I want to try planting in wooden wine boxes as raised beds like in your previous post. I have a couple but they’re hard to find; the local wine shop owner said she rarely gets them. I’ll probably use white five gallon food buckets for my tomatoes, and also plant some in my sunny flower beds; they did okay there last year. Thinking arranging by decreasing size will keep the nicer looking terra cotta pots in front. I’ve got lots of zinnia seeds too, for some colorful flowers amid the veggies and herbs.
http://www.yourgardenshow.com/users/budsgal/genesis-on-the-balcony
You can see pictures above of the $20 pots I found at Ikea. They have built-in casters and self-water tube/reservoir. Not the cheapest of pots, but I fell for the casters and self-watering system.
I think they hold about 2 gallons of soil. I’m planting Spacemaster 80 cukes in one and melons in the other.
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