Container vegetable gardening tips

I have a small vegetable garden plot in my backyard. This year I'm growing four different varieties of tomatoes, two varieties of peppers, cucumbers, carrots and a few flowers to attract pollinators.  We're lucky to have excellent, black soil for growing a veggie garden.  But we still don't have a lot of sunny spots in our yard to grow a couple rows of sweet corn, for example.

That's why I was so excited to find the new patio sweet corn variety from Burpee this year. Not sure if you can tell from my photo, but I'm growing the sweet corn in a galvanized feed bucket, which I bought for less than $20 at the local farm store.  My hubby drilled a couple of holes in the bottom for drainage.  So far, the corn has been growing well.  It's actually tasseled since I took this photo.  About the only issue is that the corn started to "fire" or turn yellow at the base of the stems.  I figured that the corn is probably sucking up nitrogen with its recent growth spurt, so I gave it a dose of all-purpose fertilizer. 

I've actually had really good luck the past couple years growing tomatoes, peppers and strawberries in 5 gallon buckets instead of planting them in the ground.  What I love about container gardening is that I control how much water and fertilizer the plants get.  And I can move the containers around whenever I want to change up the look of my garden.

This year, I took the advice of a local farmer and planted a ground cherry plant in a container.  When I bought the plant, it was just a tiny stem.  Look how it's bushed out!

I've also planted a "bush" summer squash variety in a bucket.  It's the first time I've planted squash in a container.  So far, it's growing good.  Every morning, it's loaded with squash blossoms, but I don't see any tiny squash forming yet.  But that's kind of up to whether the pollinators are finding the blossoms or not.

I'm also growing a sweet 100 cherry tomato in a bucket. Again, this little tomato was just a stem with one leaf when I bought it.  It's really filled out since then.

The only thing to remember when growing flowers or veggies in pots is that you need to keep the containers well watered, because they will dry out much faster than if you plant in the ground.  We're going through another dry spell this July, and I water the pots every day in the early morning before I drive to work.  The veggies also do well with a dose of all-purpose fertilizer once every two weeks.

While I'm sharing tips about my garden, I might as well share a few of my favorite photos from the garden as well.  The hollyhocks are blooming like crazy this year.

And I just had to share this photo of the garden gnome my husband bought me for my birthday.  I've got my soaker hose well positioned to give this little guy a "shower" every once and a while.  It makes me giggle everytime I see him out in my tomato patch.

I'm using the soaker hose as a cheap alternative to drip line irrigation in my garden.  I move the hose to a different spot in the garden whenever needed.  Veggie gardens need about 1 inch of water per week.  We haven't had a measurable rain in more than 2 weeks, so things are looking pretty crispy outside. There's rain in the forecast tomorrow, though, which is a good thing.

How's your garden growing this year? Do you have any container garden tips to share?

Hot pink flowering strawberry

A few weeks back, I stopped by the Iowa Arboreteum's spring plant sale.  I only planned to buy a couple new hostas, but I ended up buying more than a couple!  I couldn't resist the unique plant offerings, including this strawberry plant -- with hot pink flowers!  The plant tag explains that it's an ornamental and edible ever-bearing strawberry that you can plant in a regular pot; it doesn't grow runners.

Unfortunately, the tag doesn't say what the strawberry variety is called.  I did a quick Google search and found this Toscana strawberry, which looks pretty close to what I bought.  I was so thrilled to find such a new-to-me strawberry variety, but then a few days later, I found the same strawberry plant at my local Fareway greenhouse.  So maybe it's not that unusual!

I'll keep you updated on how the strawberries turn out.  Have you ever grown a pink-flowered strawberry?  Have they been around for a while and I just have never heard of them?

Seed starting: Week 4

Just a quick update on my latest attempt at seed starting.  So far, everything is growing good.  I keep the grow light on for about 15 hours each day, and I water the seedlings whenever they look dry.  But other than that, I'm just watching these little pepper plants grow.

I also planted tomato seeds about 2 weeks ago.  They're looking a little spindly right now, but they're already forming their first true leaves, so I'm taking that as a good sign.

In another month, they should be ready to plant outside. Fingers crossed that I can keep them alive until then!

Seed starting

My husband and I enjoyed the orange blossom tomatoes I found at the Ames Farmers Market last year. So I decided to try to grow them from seed at home this spring.  I've made a couple other attempts at seed starting before, but never had much luck. Mostly because I wasn't very scientific about it.  I just planted seeds in the trays, put them near a window and hoped they grew.  But the seedlings were always spindly, or they would mold in the wet trays.

So this year, I did my homework and invested some cash to make it work.  When I've got money sunk into a project, I'm a little more committed to seeing it through.  I went to Earl May and bought a seedling heat mat ($40) and a 2-foot grow light ($90). Yes, I could have bought them cheaper online, but I liked buying them from a local store.  And my friend who is a master gardener told me that a grow light is a must and worth the investment.

I started out by planting mini lunchbox pepper seeds, a new veggie I would love to grow at home. Pepper seeds take longer to grow than tomatoes, so I started these seeds in mid-March, as recommended by Iowa State University Extension.  I've been following the seed starting instructions from ISU Extension, which are available online.

I'm using a seedling starting tray I got for free from Gurney's. I'm signed up for Gurney's emails, and the company offered a free 10-pod tray as a one-day special, as long as I paid the $4 shipping and handling costs.  I couldn't pass up the deal.

I placed the seedling tray in the basement, on top of the heat mat.  Unfortunately, our basement got too chilly when the March temperatures dipped below freezing, so the seeds didn't germinate a week after I planted them.  I moved the seedling tray upstairs, and the seeds germinated immediately.  A few of the seeds didn't make it, though, because they got moldy after sitting in the cold, damp basement.

I panicked when the seeds didn't pop up after a week, so I bought another seed starting tray at Wal-Mart to plant a second set of seeds.  It's a Burpee Eco-Tray, and it was only $2.  They are just peat-moss planters with a cardboard tray for catching the water.  Then I covered them with plastic wrap.  After just six days, the seeds started to germinate.  So I guess the $2 tray was worth the money!

So far, everything is looking good.  I've got the seedlings under the grow light now, and I'm trying to let the trays dry out a little before I water them, so I don't run into anymore mold problems.  I planted the tomato seeds this weekend, and I'll keep you updated on how it all turns out.  I figure if I can't make it work in time for spring planting, I'll try to grow broccoli, lettuce and cauliflower seeds this summer for fall planting.

Do you start seeds at home?  Any advice for a newbie?  I really want to make this work, so it's not just another expensive hobby.

Garden seed 2013

 

Yep, I bought garden seed already.  I get so excited when those seed catalogs arrive in the mail!  I'm happy to see that seed companies are offering more seeds for container growing.  Last year, I had great luck with the plants I grew in pots.  I'm planning to grow more container plants this summer, although I'm a little worried that the drought might lead to water-use restrictions in my town.  Container plants need to be watered at least once a day in the summer heat.  But I'm hoping for the best and that the drought will end this spring.

I would like to grow more flowers this year.  I saw dwarf sunflowers at the Iowa State Fair's Master Gardeners' plot, and I want to try to grow them at home.

Burpee Seed Co. is offering sweet corn for container gardening this year!  I've always wanted to grow sweet corn, but don't have the space.  I can't wait to see if these seeds will actually grow!

Something else I've always wanted to try, a dwarf melon variety that you can grow in a pot.  I might actually plant these in my little garden rather than a pot.  I would love to grow melons in my backyard!

And one more from Burpee, a new winter squash variety for container gardening.

And then after visiting the White House kitchen garden last fall, I've been wanting to grow scarlett runner beans.  I don't think these are edible, but the purple-flowered vines gave the White House kitchen garden a beautiful "cottage garden" look.  So I'm going to try these at home, maybe with a teepee-shaped trellis.

The rest of the garden seed that I like to grow -- like marigolds and zinnias -- I'll wait to buy until spring, when they're a little cheaper.  I'm willing to pay full price, and shipping, when it's a seed variety that's difficult to find locally.

Have you bought your 2013 garden seed yet?  What are you looking forward to growing this year?

Planting tulips

 My husband and I took advantage of what may be the last weekend before the snow flies (ugh, I hope winter doesn't arrive early!) and cleaned up our garden and yard.  I planted a few tulips in scattered places around my garden, in a likely fruitless attempt to keep the tulips hidden from the squirrels.

Last year, I forgot where I planted some of the tulips, and then I was surprised when the tulips popped up in a random spot.  So this year, I tried to take photos so I wouldn't forget where I planted them.

I also planted a few new irises to add a little more variety to my spring garden.  I'm trying to stick with a yellow and purple color scheme for the spring.

I didn't spend a lot of money on tulips this year, because the squirrels always seem to dig a few up.  Is it just me, or are the squirrels being extra "squirrel-y" this week?  This squirrel was freaking out right in front of me. Either it's because the little guy is preparing for winter, or maybe because my husband saw a hawk up in our tree :)

Yep, the squirrels are already digging in the garden.

 

So far, the squirrels haven't found the tulips. So I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they won't!

White House fall garden tour

I can't believe I'm writing this, but I have exciting news to share. Last week, I was invited to attend the White House fall garden tour for social media!  I learned about the opportunity on Twitter (which I'm on everyday for work).  I applied and was accepted to join the tour of the White House kitchen and rose gardens with 40 other social meeting guests.

I arrived at the White House at 7:30 a.m. to go through security.  The sun still wasn't up yet, and it started pouring rain when I got to the gate.  I didn't bring an umbrella, because I wasn't sure it was allowed through security.  So I ended up walking around the White House gardens with wet hair and clothes the entire time!  I'm still embarrassed about it, but sometimes you just need to laugh and get over it.

After waiting 40 minutes outside (in the rain), they finally let us into the White House gardens.  Check out my favorite photos from the day.

Guests were invited to take photos and "tweet" as they walked through the White House gardens.

My primary motivation for signing up for the White House tour was to see the famous kitchen garden.  I've been a huge fan of the White House kitchen garden from the beginning.  I've even downloaded the garden plan to see if I could replicate it at home.  I was really excited to see the famous White House beehive! We learned from the White House pastry chef that the bees produced 175 pounds of honey last year.  The honey is used as a natural sweetener in desserts at the White House, as well as in the famous White House beer.

I was a little disappointed that we weren't allowed to walk through the kitchen garden; they kept us roped off just a few feet away.  I didn't get the greatest photos, because I was stuck behind the other photographers who got there first. But as you can see in the photos, the White House kitchen garden is planted in raised garden beds. The fall crops include carrots, kale, a few peppers and tomatoes (there hasn't been a hard freeze in D.C. yet). There are beautiful hyacinth beans climbing up posts, and there's even a papaya tree planted in a pot, just to see how it grows.  The produce is served at White House dinners, including the Obama's family meals, and the extras are given to a local food pantry.

Not sure if you can tell, but the purple and green lettuces are planted in a checkerboard style in the back.  We learned that the National Park Service tends the White House gardens, and there's someone out in the kitchen garden everyday, pulling weeds and checking for insects.  I wish I had that kind of help in my little backyard garden!

We were quickly "shooed" out of the kitchen garden so we could visit the Rose Garden before the public tours.  We saw the White House swing set and putting green.

We got so close to the Oval Office, we could look through the windows!

And then finally, we visited the famous White House rose garden.

We only got to take a few photos before we were told to leave the garden immediately.  We heard a rumor the President Obama would make an appearance, so we waited around for a few minutes just outside the edges of the Rose Garden.  About 10 minutes later, I heard a yell from the gathering crowd, and I looked up and saw the president and his dog, Bo, walking through the Rose Garden!  I was too far back in the crowd to get a decent photo, but I'll have that memory etched into my mind forever!

It was an amazing day, and I'm so glad that I had the opportunity to share it all with you.  Are you a fan of the White House Kitchen Garden?  I think no matter what your politics are, it's still a great project to support healthy eating among American families, especially kids.

Pumpkin-on-a-stick

I follow the Iowa-based Earl May Garden Center on Facebook, and a recent post encouraged customers to check out the Pumpkins-On-A-Stick now in stores.  I had never heard of pumpkins-on-a-stick, so I did a quick Google search and discovered that the plants are very popular for fall flower arrangements.

The plant is actually an eggplant, not a pumpkin.  The thorny branches start to bud into white blossoms, which grow into tiny green fruit that turns orange in the fall. The eggplant looks like a tiny pumpkin.  Earl May offered the plants in decorative pots, with artificial fall leaves to add a little more holiday color.

The average first freeze date in central Iowa is just a few weeks away, so I decided to just place the pot inside the concrete planter by our front step. (Plus, the plant has some sharp thorns, which I didn't want to touch!)  I planted a few pansies around the pot to help hide the plastic container.

Here's a couple close-up shots of the pumpkin-on-a-stick.  The orange leaves are artificial, but the orange pumpkin-shaped fruit is real. If you look closely, you can see the white blooms and the green fruit that hasn't turned orange yet.

It was a bit of a splurge -- the plant cost $20 -- but I really like the festive fall color it adds to my front porch.  Have you ever grown pumpkin-on-a-stick?  I had never heard of it before until I read about it on Facebook.

July odds & ends

I thought it would be fun to show you what I've been up to so far this summer.  I'm in love with my garden right now.  My herb pot looks amazing, and I've been harvesting ever-bearing strawberries and early tomatoes almost every day.

Last week, I visited the Des Moines farmers market and picked up the most delicious Missouri peaches.  We ended up eating a whole bag full of peaches in one day! They were that good!

We finally got rain last week!  It totaled about 0.8 inch over two separate rainstorms.  I was so excited to see rain after our two-week dry spell, I just had to take a photo while I waited in my car for the rain to stop.

I picked up this bag of Vidalia onions at the grocery store, and I was surprised to see Josh Turner, one of my favorite country singers, on the bag. It made me like Vidalia onions even more :)

My sister found this message in her fortune cookie the other day.  What does it mean?

I'm convinced that ice cream tastes even better when it's 100 degrees outside, and when it's eaten with a wood spoon.

I bought a few annual flowers and a couple tomatoes on sale to help fill out bare spots in my garden where the seeds didn't come up.  Do you ever buy plants at the end of the season?

My husband and I spent an afternoon shopping at the Bass Pro Shop in Altoona.  I loved this unique merry-go-round at the entrance.  Is this new?  I don't remember it from previous visits.

So what have you been up to this summer?  It's been a hot one, but a lot of fun!