Thrifty Container Gardening?

Suzanne

February 3, 20050 found this helpful

HI :)

Alot of people in this area use drywall mud or industrial paint buckets... wash them very well and poke holes in the bottom for drainage... fill 1/4 of the way with stones or something to allow good drainage... plant 1 tomato plant per bucket or 2 pepper plants... cucumbers and zucchini have also been planted this way :)

Freecycle.org. You can request for items there. I got a container through it for gardening.

Meari

May 4, 20050 found this helpful

I read somewhere instead of using stones in the bottom, to use packing peanuts. They are much lighter!

I used paint buckets with holes drilled in the botton for the second year in a row and absolutely love the results. I have had tomatos all summer (the ones the squirells dont get first) and they work great!

Jennifer Allen

January 31, 20080 found this helpful

I have a lot of shells from previous beach trips (my kids loved to collect when they were little). I have used them in the bottom of containers for drainage.

There is a recycling program in our city, so the gardenning centers tosses used pots in bins. When I go grocery shopping i raid the bin in that store's gardenning center. I've bought few pots. Keep worms in a bin and feed them vegetable kitchen waste.

Since my container garden is on the front of my house because it gets more sunlight there, I thought it would look better if all the containers were the same. I bought dollar store waste baskets, drilled holes in the bottoms, used packing peanuts for drainage, and filled with soil. I have grown tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, lettuce, and herbs like sage, basil, mint, parsley and chives. This was my 5th year using these containers.

Cyndy Schuessler

October 23, 20080 found this helpful

has anyone grown vegetables all year in containers...I wanted to plant lettuce, spinach, tomatoes and cucumbers in containers and grow them this winter in my attic. It's chilly there but the sun is great. There's nothing better than fresh vegetables. Would love to be able to do this...any suggestions would be appreciated.

Cyndy Schuessler

October 23, 20080 found this helpful

has anyone grown vegetables all year in containers...I wanted to plant lettuce, spinach, tomatoes and cucumbers in containers and grow them this winter in my attic. It's chilly there but the sun is great. There's nothing better than fresh vegetables. Would love to be able to do this...any suggestions would be appreciated.

I live in Central Texas and have a neighbor who raises cattle. I kept seeing these 10 gal tubs in his pasture. I finally asked him about them and learned that these are minerals that look alot like black tar that the cattle lick to supplement their diet.