Container gardening provides a fun and diverse alternative to growing plants in traditional ground beds. You can successfully grow many plants such as vegetables, herbs, and flowers, both perennial and annual.

Containers can be physically easier to work on than traditional beds. They also are portable, come in a diverse variety of materials, shapes and colours, and provide other possibilities for displaying plants.

Containers can be used in smaller spaces such as balconies or decks for people who do not have a lot of yard space. Small-scale container gardening can also be very affordable.

However, there are several problems that gardeners using containers face. Containers dry out faster than ground beds. It depends on the type of pot, size of pot, and type of plant as to how fast it will dry out.

Experts point out that hanging baskets dry out the fastest and smaller pots dry out faster than larger pots. Some plants may need to be watered daily or twice daily in hot weather.  So a gardener needs to decide what is the best way to maintain moisture, and how often to water their plants.

You can select containers by: their type, their material, their water retention, their size and shape, and their aesthetics. For a good review of the different containers go to: www.container-gardening-made-easy.com.

Here are some pointers for container selection and use:

It’s a good idea to choose pots with wide openings, with holes one-half inch wide for drainage, and of a size of 15 to 120 quarts capacity. Very small pots dry out too fast and confine the roots.

You should line the bottom of pots with newspaper to prevent soil loss. Hanging baskets should be lined with sphagnum peat moss to retain water better.

Select higher-grade plastic pots so that they will resist weathering and cracking. Plastic pots are lighter than stone, iron or ceramic pots, so it is better to use them if you have trouble lifting containers or if you select larger containers. There are PVC plastic planter boxes available that have a 20-year warranty.

If you want a ceramic container, it is better to select a glazed one, since it won’t dry out as quickly as a plain terracotta pot. If you use clay pots, then you will need to water them more often since they are porous and lose moisture more quickly. Redwood and cedar are the best for wooden containers, and can be used without staining or painting.

Self-watering containers are highly recommended of vegetable gardening. They can provide several days worth of water to your plants if you pick the right size. You will need to check a water gauge to see if they need refilling.

The container reservoir openings should be plugged between waterings so that bugs don’t crawl in. Mosquitoes sometimes use these reservoirs in containers as breeding spots.

The containers also become quite heavy because of the soil and water reservoir, so you may need to put them on wheels to move them or use smaller containers that are not as heavy.

Self-watering pots made of high-grade fibreglass are an attractive option. They look like a ceramic pot with a high-gloss finish but they are lighter, very strong, and weather-resistant.

The other major problem is that flowering, fruiting, and mature plants need nutrients for them to flourish. With repeated watering, nutrients are washed out of your pot, so they must be replenished. It is necessary to put fertilizer such as compost into your potting mix, and to fertilize your pots more often than your beds.

So how should you get started? You need to make or buy potting mix. Most experts warn against using topsoil from your yard or from stores. Topsoil compacts too much in a container, restricting the movement of water and air, which are both necessary for healthy plants. Yard topsoil would also need to be sanitized so that you don’t bring pests or disease into your containers.

Most experts recommend using a soil-less potting mix that includes peat moss (coco, sedge or sphagnum), compost, vermiculite or perlite, and limestone.

Peat moss improves water wicking and water retention. If you use a traditional pot, it is better to use sedge peat or coco peat, which retains water longer. Sphagnum peat is better for use in self-watering pots.

A recipe for making your own improved mix is one 20-quart bag of compost to one 20-quart bag of potting mix plus an organic fertilizer of 1/3 cup each of  blood meal, colloidal phosphate and greensand and 1 tablespoon of azomite. He mixes it in a wheelbarrow and adds enough water to moisten the mix.