Growing crops in a pot makes a garden appealing. However, it also serves a practical purpose. Potted plants are ideal for people who don’t have enough garden space. Besides flowers, individuals can grow other plants like vegetables in these pots.
Several instances make flower pot gardening helpful. For example, consider planting in pots if you want to add height, texture, and variety to your garden. Additionally, people with limited space or who want to control the soil quality can benefit from this planting type. Lastly, flowerpots are fantastic if you want to move plants indoors during the cold weather or grow all year round herbs and vegetables like basil and thyme.
Caring for Plants in a Pot
Growing plants in a flowerpot is easy. However, your crops need constant monitoring to thrive in this environment. You also need to make certain considerations to encourage the growth of your plants. These include:
The Size of the Pot
The larger your flower pot, the easier it will be to grow plants. Large containers hold more soil and don’t let moisture penetrate easily. Plus, they resist temperature fluctuations, which may affect the success of your plants. Small pots tend to dry out quickly, especially during hot water. Therefore, you will need to water them frequently to encourage the plants to grow.
But when choosing the pot, the type of plant you think of growing affects how deep and large your container should be. Some root systems generally need larger containers than others. For instance, if practicing mixed planting, you need to allow enough root space for the plant to thrive.
Additionally, how much space you have influences the size and weight of the pot. Of course, if your space is limited, some pots will not fit correctly.
The Flowerpot’s Drainage
Your pot needs to have enough drainage holes that let water out. Please note that plants can’t survive in waterlogged soil, at least most of them. Ensure that there are various large holes that drain water out quickly. Most pots come with holes already. But you can drill them if yours doesn’t have.
The Potting Mix
It’s never advisable to soil from your garden or yard as it may contain weeds, insects, and fungal diseases. Instead, buy from a local garden center. Potting soil is light and contains peat moss, vermiculite, and decomposed organic matter.
You can also ask if the potting mix contains a time-release container and polymer crystals that retain moisture. This will save you on maintenance time and effort.
How to Choose the Plants to Grow in a Flowerpot?
Vegetables, herbs, small trees, and flowers are the best plants to grow in flower pots. If your pots are small, think of planting dwarf or compact cultivars. Please choose the plant based on the requirements. For instance, rose flowers need at least 6 hours of full sun. So, you can’t grow them on a porch receiving only one hour of sunlight in the morning. Also, it would be best if you kept fragrant plants like heliotrope in places that don’t experience breeze or it will disperse the plant’s perfume.
Play around with plants. You can grow flowers and edible plants to make your garden attractive. But please remember that potted plants aren’t as hardy as usual since their roots experience fluctuating air temperatures. Therefore, you will have to protect them during winter or shelter them from time to time. For this reason, you may want to keep the container light and think of how you’ll be moving the plants. That said, here are the plants you can grow in a flowerpot;
- Vegetables- include broccoli, cabbage, pumpkins, tomato, winter squash, basil, parsley, and lettuces.
- Annuals- these help your container remain attractive during the whole summer. You can grow annuals like scarlet sage, wax begonias, coleus, and geraniums. Sometimes one plant may not work out. In that case, you can always try another.
- Perennials and shrubs- most people often plant hostas and daylilies, but ferns, European wild ginger, lavender, lungworts, and lamiums are all great choices.
Water Requirements
Watering potted plants isn’t the same as watering those planted directly in the soil. Remember that potting soil isn’t as dense as garden soil. Therefore, it holds less water and the pot also limits the amount of water the soil can hold. Plus, since pots are placed above the ground, there is no mass around to cool the soil.
Be careful when watering your plants. You don’t want to underwater or overwater as it can kill them. You only need to keep the soil moist throughout, not dry or wet. Also, when it’s hot, you may need to water your plants twice a day to prevent drying. Again provide the correct humidity of between 70 to 80 percent.
You can use a watering can or garden hose to water your plants. Please aim directly at the soil and not the leaves.
Sunlight and Temperature
You need to consider how much sunlight your plant needs before planting it. Most will need between 7 and 12 hours of sunlight exposure every day. If you can’t provide this, opt for varieties that tolerate shade, like chard and spinach.
Generally, you need to provide full sun for 6-8 hours a day, partial sun for 4-6 hours daily, ideally in the morning and early afternoon, and 4 hours of indirect sunlight per day.
Additionally, the ideal temperatures for most plants are 55 degrees and 75 degrees F. Note that the roots of potted plants tend to get hotter and colder quickly than those planted directly on the ground. So ensure you provide shade. Think of placing pots together so that plants can shade each other when the weather is hot. Also, remember to move the flowerpots inside before it frosts.
Feeding
Potted crops need more fertilizer than those planted in the ground. Since they need frequent water, you tend to flush out nutrients from the soil each time you water. A time-release fertilizer is recommended when planting these crops.
Also, make sure you feed your plants with a liquid or water-soluble fertilizer after a few weeks. This ensures that you supply them with nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, and other essential minerals. It’s also best to opt for organic fertilizers instead of synthetic ones to avoid burning your plants.
Pests
Plants grown in pots don’t get attacked by pests frequently since their environment is clean and inspected regularly. But, they’re not immune to diseases, insects, and other problems.
Ensure that you inspect plats before purchasing and wash them gently before planting to avoid pests. Also, provide the best growing conditions and clean your tools, pots, and hands.
If you have a pest problem, it’s best to hire a professional service to help you deal with it. But, awareness of the pest you’re dealing with can help you take safe control measures.