In the latest blog in our Grow Your Own series we have some ideas for fruit and veg that will thrive in pots.
If you don’t have a garden or much outdoor space, or if you live in rented property and don’t want to plant anything, you can still grow your own using pots and there are plenty of crops that will do really well in containers.
There are also benefits to using pots – you can tailor the compost exactly to the fruit or veg you are growing, you can move the pots around if they need more or less sun, and you can meet the exact watering requirements without worrying you are over or underwatering whatever is planted next to it. Just because you don’t have an allotment or a big garden, that doesn’t mean you can’t have a go at growing your own food. Have a look at our ideas below for plants that will do well in containers.
Herbs
Herbs do really well in containers, especially if you group things together that like the same conditions. Mediterranean herbs like rosemary, lavender, oregano, sage, thyme and tarragon all like it hot and dry, and can’t cope with being waterlogged over the winter. If you plants these herbs in pots, either together or separately, you can make sure you’re on top of the watering and move them somewhere a bit drier over winter. When you’re potting these types of herbs up, it’s good idea to add some grit to your compost to make sure they have really good drainage, so they won’t get too wet.
Mint is another good herb for pots, it can be a real thug and will take over your garden if you plant it straight into the ground. There are lots of different types of mint available, including peppermint, apple mint, strawberry mint and even chocolate mint. If you are planning on growing more than one variety, make sure you plant them in separate pots as
they can cross pollinate and eventually they will start tasting the same.
Potatoes
New potatoes will do well in a pot, as long as it’s fairly large. Just two or three seed potatoes in a big pot or a grow bag will give you a decent crop when it’s time to harvest them. It might not fulfil all your potato needs for the year, but it will give you some of your own homegrown variety, which, as everyone knows, is the best and most tastiest variety ever. Planting potatoes in a pot also makes it easier to ‘earth’ them up – which just means covering the shoots will soil as they grow to increase your crop and also stop the potatoes turning green and poisonous.
Tomatoes
In the same family as the potato (check out the flowers – they look really similar), tomatoes also do well in a pot. If you have somewhere nice and sunny to grow them, you can try some really exciting varieties at home. Tomatoes are very hungry and thirsty plants though, so you will need to make sure you water them consistently and give them a good tomato feed regularly, especially when they are flowering and fruiting.
Lettuce
Try growing some cut and come again lettuce in a window box or somewhere near your kitchen so you can easily harvest some lovely fresh leaves just when you want them. They are very easy to grow and while they prefer full sun, they can also do well in partial shade. They don’t like it too hot though, so don’t put them somewhere they will bake. They will also need protection from slugs and snails when they are young plants – I have had many lettuce plants decimated by the slimy munchers just when they were starting to look promising! A good way to protect them is to grow them indoors – a cool windowsill, shed or greenhouse will all work – and then put them outside once they’re a decent size.
Fruit
Some bush fruit, and even small trees, will do well in a container as long as you get a fairly big pot and make sure they have lots of good quality compost and feed them well. Berries like raspberries and blackberries will do well in a pot if you get a dwarf variety, and it also means they won’t take over once they get going. Gooseberries, strawberries, cherries, redcurrant and blackcurrants will all do well in a container too.
Figs are also great in containers as they fruit better when their growth is restricted. Blueberries and cranberries need acid soil to grow well – you can find this in garden centres, just look for ericaceous compost in bags. Most garden soils tend to be more neutral in pH than acidic, and it’s really difficult to change your soil pH, especially in the long term, so growing these plants in pots works really well. You can give your blueberries and cranberries exactly what they need and it won’t affect any other plants.
A mini allotment in a container
If you have room for one big container or even a small raised bed, you could try growing a few things together and have your own mini allotment. You could try things like carrots or beetroot interplanted with radish – the radish will grow quickly so you can harvest them before the root veg get bigger and need the space. Add in some herbs like fennel or chives and it will look and taste fantastic.
You could also have a row of lettuce at the front, rainbow chard or cavalo nero in the middle and runner beans or peas at the back. Look for dwarf varieties that will take up less room and need less energy, so less fertiliser, to grow well. You could even plant some tiny alpine strawberries to spill over the edge and add in some flowers like calendula and nasturtiums – both are edible, look pretty and will attract lots of pollinators.
There are lots of other fruit and veg you can grow in containers – check out Claire Ratinon’s great book How to Grow Your Dinner Without Leaving the House, or look online for more ideas.
The most important things you need to think about if you want to grow things in pots is to make sure you have nice big pots, you know the sort of conditions your fruit or veg needs – the sort of soil they do well in, how much sun they need, how often you need to feed them – and don’t forget to water them! Plants in pots dry out faster than plants in the ground and most veg and fruit are very thirsty, so don’t let them dry out.
