Vertical gardening in its simplest form is the idea of taking vegetables that in their natural state may tend to sprawl over the ground, and providing a support structure to allow them to grow vertically. Critical to this is often the support of the ripening fruit or vegetable.
Not to be overlooked are ornamental vining plants like clematis, honeysuckle, Virginia creeper, or ivies.
Advantages of vertical gardens:
In spite of your best efforts, there will be times when your container vegetable garden will have problems. Here is a list of some of the typical indoor container garden problems, the probable cause, and some suggested solutions to try.
Living in an apartment can put a damper on the fledgling urban gardener, but a vegetable garden for apartment dwellers is not out of the question. You can put a vegetable garden on a balcony, tucked in along a fence, or even in a few containers in your apartment window. It’s not the usual approach so it takes some research, you can enjoy fresh herbs and vegetables even in your own apartment or condo. The key is to understand this unique environment, and select plants and herbs that require less space (and maybe sunlight) to grow. Doing this can provide you own little oasis of natural living in an otherwise urban setting.
It Starts with the Pot
When starting a container vegetable garden, the choice of a proper pot is key. If it’s too small it will crowd the roots. Conversely, very large pots can be difficult to move so they can take best advantage of the available sunlight. A good pot for container vegetable gardening needs to provide good drainage. Visualize the mature plants, not forgetting the root system, and make sure the pot is large enough to allow the finished plant room.
One rule of thumb for container vegetable gardens is to allow at least 18 inches in diameter or width and 18 inches of depth for most plants; this will vary depending on the exact vegetable that is being grown, carrots for example will need twice the depth they are expected to reach at maturity, while many herbs will get by with considerably less room.
There are many advantages to indoor container vegetable gardening.
- It can be a year round hobby, since climate will not be as much of an issue for this style of gardening.
- You can enjoy the harvest of a garden whether you live on a farm or in a city apartment.
- When cultivating an indoor container vegetable garden, weeds and garden pests aren’t usually as much of a problem.
