Vegetables in pots

On a windowsill, you will be able to glean a few small tomatoes and aromatic plants. And on a terrace or a large balcony, you have real harvests. A pleasure not to be missed!

Vegetables in pots

Is it suitable for all vegetables?

Classic vegetables like tomatoes, potatoes, carrots and salads grow well in pots, if the volume is big enough. In general, a window box can house between 2 and 3 young vegetable plants. Vegetables which need a rich soil, like cabbages and gourds (courgettes, pumpkins, squashes, etc.), grow well only if grown in large pots, each plant needing at least 30 litres of compost.

Which soil?

Rich compost is a must. If you can, mix it in with some garden soil, in equal parts. You will obtain very good results. Do not use pure heath peat, as it is not nutritive enough.

Think of supple bags

They are a practical alternative to rigid pots to grow vegetables in. Available since a few years, they have the textile resistance and lightness. They are perfect to grow vegetables in!

Tomatoes within easy reach

Plant them out as from the 10th of May to avoid the risk of late frost, unless you live in a mild area or in the centre of a big town. In that case, you can plant them out as early as mid-April. Tomatoes need full sun and do not suffer from a wall reflection or draught. Choose smaller fruiting varieties, more suited to be grown in containers. Provide 5 L of substrate per plant. The variety 'Tumbling Tom' produces well in pots. It can be grown hanging down or attached with a stake.

Potatoes in pots

You only need to plant the tubers 10 cm deep in a pot at least 30 cm high, in a rich substrate. In Britain, gardeners bury each month the bottom of the potatoes’ plants, in order to force the plants to rise and form numerous tubers. All potatoes varieties are suitable but the ones which have smaller tubers ('Ratte' for example) produce more.

In the shade, favour leaf vegetables

Salads, Spinach and other green salads are more suited to the lack of light than the fleshy vegetables, especially the ones that form from a flower (tomatoes, etc.). The latest are anyway impossible to get, unless the pots benefit from at least 4 or 5 hours of sunshine per day in the summer. Furthermore, they need to grow in large, bulky containers. As from vegetables grown in the shade, they will have a different aspect; they will be more slender, with larger but less tough leaves. For salads and radishes, it is just ideal!

Vegetables in pots
Vegetables in pots
Vegetables in pots
M. Jean-Michel GROULT
 
Pépinières PLANFOR
1950 Route de Cère
40090 UCHACQ - FRANCE
Tel : (020).7660.0178