Container Vegetable Gardening
Container vegetable gardening can be a great option for you if you do not have a lot of gardening space to work with. Don’t let a lack of acreage deter you from your desire to grow your own beautiful veggies! Most veggies can be grown in small containers or buckets!
Some Great Advantages!There are several advantages to container vegetable gardening too! One advantage is that you can squeeze them in just about anywhere. I just read about a guy who has his own container garden out on his apartment balcony as well as on his fire escape in the middle of a densely populated urban area.I’m not going to have all the space I want in my raised beds this year, so my plan is to construct a sturdy shelf, attach it to my privacy fence along my driveway, and use that to support a small container garden. Another advantage is that the soil in your containers will warm faster – which is good for growing happy veggies. The "Rules"Many of the same rules that apply to “regular” gardening apply to container vegetable gardening.Sun - Most of your veggies still need at least 6 hours of full-sun a day. The good thing is, small containers and buckets are portable; so if you find your veggies aren’t getting the sun they need during a particular part of the day, just move ‘em! It’s that simple! Soil - You’ll still want the soil in your containers to be well drained. If you’re using 5-gallon plastic buckets, be sure to drill a handful of holes (at least 1/4 inch in diameter toward the bottom, as well as on the sides of the bucket) to allow for drainage. 
If you find that your soil is still too wet, you’ll want to go with a larger drill bit and perhaps drill a couple more holes. If you’re using large planters, you shouldn’t have to worry too much about drainage. Just make sure it has a hole in the bottom. You should also be sure to amend the soil in your container vegetable garden with some nice homegrown compost. Even veggies need to eat! A Word About BucketsIf you do decide to go with plastic 5-gallon buckets, I’d recommend that you go with buckets that are made from “food-grade” plastic. There is “some” speculation that using non-food-grade plastic may cause certain “substances” in the plastic to leach into the soil, ultimately ending up in your veggies – which end up in you.I can neither confirm nor deny whether or not there is any truth to that; which is why I’d say to go for the food-grade buckets. They should say right on the bottom of the bucket whether or not they’re food-grade. Sometimes you can even get food-grade buckets for FREE (or very cheap) from a local baker.
Now, get out there and grow some food! You can do this! No fear!
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