DIY Pallet Container Garden - Large Version

Pallet Container Garden

A few weeks ago I posted about a DIY container garden I made from a pallet.  Then just a few weeks later I was at the Garfield Park Conservatory and saw this very large option, up-cycled pallets,  in their vegetable garden.  

Please do not attempt to put this design on a porch! This must weight a ton. Especially after the rain or a good watering. 

That said, if my yard had extremely poor soil, or I was growing a root crop, this would be in my yard most certainly!

Same basic considerations are used create this architectural element for the garden as in my smaller version. 

DIY Pallet Vertical Container Garden

Using pallets for something other than shipping platforms is fun and easy to do. I see lots of furniture and household items created from pallets. I have a posts on a few items I've created along these lines. This spring I wanted to make something for my garden - that being a pallet vertical garden.

Vertical Container Garden from Old Pallets

I created two planters this year, one which I placed in the shade near some hostas. Nothing tall seemed to want to grow here and I thought a little vertical interest would be a nice add. The second I put against a wall with lots of sunshine and perhaps too hot for other items. The latter was great for succulents :)

The pictures are from the shade pallet container garden - my first attempt. I also note some lessons learned that I incorporated into the second garden.

Here is my supply list:
- Wooden Pallet
- Additional wood (optional depending on the pallet) I used old wood flooring
- Heavy duty garbage bags (large)
- Hammer / Nails
- Staple Gun
- Old Coffee Sacks or Burlap Fabric
- Plastic milk jug or other beverage container
- Scissors or Knife
- Potting Soil
- Plants

Wine Crate Container Garden - DIY up-cycle

Earlier this week I was giving a presentation on container gardening with a focus on Herbs. When I give garden workshops I like to have something live to use as demonstration so I decided to up cycle a wine crate into a container garden. 

Wine Crate Herb Container Garden - DIY

There are a number of how-to websites that simply treat - drill holes - plant. This didn't seem to be quite sufficient for a container that I hoped would last all summer outside. I keep in mind that wine crates are designed for one time use; they are not the best wood out there and are usually not constructed very well. Therefore, I decided to do a few things differently than others propose. My technique includes:

Dividing Potted Succulents

Repot Me PLEASE!!!

Several years ago I started this succulent (I believe a Gasteria) from a cutting received at the Huntington Garden.  It is a very slow growing plant - so just this spring I decided to divide and repot it. This is a clump-forming succulent plant, so as soon as the container is "full" the plants are clearly outgrowing their assigned space and need to be divided. It's similar for aloe, some sedums, agave, hens & chicks, and the like. For most succulents Spring and early summer are the best times to divide since it's before their growing season. However, there are succulents who's main growing season is winter - so double check before you proceed. 

Here's my approach for dividing and repotting succulents

Transplanting Large succulents: Christmas Cactus

My Great Grandmother's Christmas Cactus,
ready for repotting

I have been graced to own my great grandmothers Christmas cactus.  I tell myself that it’s over 100 years old – but I have no idea of its age, only it’s provenance. As a mature succulent, it needs to be transplanted periodicaly without increasing the post size. Most cacti and succulents do best in pots that are quite small in proportion to the size of their top growth, my Christmas Cactus is no exception.  The plant grows over 8-10 inches over the soil top, and a 18 inches wider all around the container. It’s already so big and heavy – there is no need to increase the container size. If you have a smaller succulent, when you decide to repot them, move up one size larger than the one they are in. always use plenty of drainage material in the bottom of the pot.  Leaving succulents in small containers works  - they may dwarf and slow in growth.

How do I know when it’s time to repot my succulent?

Failing health - time to repot! 

I have a few general rules I use to determine when to repot my succulents. You know it's time:

When roots come out the bottom of the pot. 

When the succulent start to pup (Put off new growth at the base)

When growth slows down or plant health fails

When if flowers off cycle

When you have to water much more  frequently 

My poor Christmas Cactus was off color, not holding water, and blooming off cycle. So unhappy and screaming for a new pot and some TLC!

Container Gardening - Inspiration from Rick Bayless Garden, Chicago

Architecture: containers
adding height to the garden

In an earlier post I highlighted the urban agriculture and leisure areas in Chef Rick Bayless' farm/garden in downtown Chicago.  I was also very pleased to see all the containers used in the garden.

I've captured a few of my favorites here for your consideration and inspiration.  I use quite a few containers in my own garden and teach others on the subject. So I'm always on the look out for tips, examples, and motivation. 

One thing that I find interesting in this case is that many of the plantings seem to stay consistent over the years - as I compare photos from prior tours and blogs.  Hitting on something that works and sticking to it is not a bad thing at all! I'm still in trial and error state in many parts of my garden. 

Some interesting aspects of the use of containers:

Architectural elements along pathways and within/raised gardens. For example the raised pots in the photo just above right. We were told that the sun hits the top of the garden much more than the floor - hence the high sun items raised up to greet the day.   Another interesting use of containers was to add strong vertical structure to the porch area. These large containers create an effective screen from prying eyes looking into the house, beautiful colors, and vegetables too. The climbing vine is a spinach variety!  This photo also transitions well to my next point which is clustering more than one container together in one vignette. 

Mosquito Repellent Container Garden Plants and Plans

Mosquito - Garden pest! (wiki)

Did you know that certain plants naturally repel mosquitoes? I should have put in more of these "Mosquito Repellent" plants into my container garden this year.  If more of these mosquito container gardens were on my porch - maybe I would be out there more too! I just created several container garden plans for a client who's children are allergic to mosquito's. While they also contracted with a spray service to control these pests, they wanted to naturalize the garden, lawn and container garden with some easy to grow plants which will also repel mosquitoes. 

Here are plants to use to reduce mosquitoes nibbling on you and your guests. Below, I've also included a few suggestions for container gardens with these, and crafty ways to use them as party decorations too. 

Marigold (wiki)

• Catnip (Nepeta cataria). A perennial for an annual depending on your location, catnip is more effective than DEET at controlling mosquitoes. Cats love the plant and will rip into it if it's in an unprotected garden bed. Plus the plant has a tendency to become invasive. Keep a couple of plants in hanging containers to avoid both problems.
• Marigold (Tagetes spp.). This sun-loving annual also repels other pests and is an excellent border plant for your vegetable garden. Marigolds are easy-to-care-for and you can easily collect seeds for the next year. 



Rosemary in Bloom (wiki)

• Rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis).  I love this herb and keep one in a large container and over winter it in my cold climate garden. The oil is pleasing but disgusting to mosquitoes. It’s attractive for container or herb gardens which requires little water.

Urban Children's Garden Revisited - Harvest time

In spring I had the pleasure of touring an after-school programs urban garden - which was growing along the fence between two buildings. The photo at the right shows you the location of the garden along the fence.

The kids were so excited to be growing their own vegetables and herbs when I was here in the spring. I was skeptical that there would be produce at the end of the journey - I'm pleased to say they were so successful!

Take a look back at where they started in this blog in May 2014 - and see the results in August in the photos below. This is a wonderful example of maximizing small urban spaces as productive growing areas. I would have never thought that some of the vegetables would grow under these low light and small container conditions.

Urban Vegetable Gardening - Grow Your Own

What do you need to grow your own vegetables - space, soil, water, light. Sometimes that can be a challenge in the middle of a city. A few solutions are container gardening (see prior posts and links here) as then there are raised beds. If you have any trepidation about what may be in your soil or the composition of your soil - there are steps you can take to get in the right direction. These include "lasagna gardening", "raised bed gardening", and "vertical gardening."

Let's explore these last options - and I'll use photos taken June 2014 at the Garfield Park Conservatory and prior blogs to illustrate.  The outdoor Urban Demonstration Garden at the conservatory is a purposeful example of an Urban Vegetable Garden.

Panorama of Chicago's Garfield Park Conservatory, Urban Demonstration Garden June 2014

Children's Urban Gardening - Making do with small spaces

Urban Children's Herb & Vegetable Garden

I had the opportunity to visit Creative Little Minds, a bilingual day care on Chicago's Northside. I was pleasantly surprised to see how the owner, Gloria, is incorporating gardening into the regular activities for everyone. This is with very little space in a city block. Here's the integration of Urban Gardening, Community Gardening, Children's Gardening and education all in one.   

Maybe these are some best practices:
1) Select clear garden spot with easy access for kids.  There is no threat to other garden plants or outdoor furniture or breakable objects. I think the use of the fence and walkway on the side of the house (pictured right) is a great idea. Although I wondered if there was enough sun for mature plants. 

2) Plants, pots, and tools are all placed within easy reach and at their level. I can imagine that it is easy for kids to inspect their plant growth every day.  The planters on the fence are at multiple heights - based on each child's abilities.

Container Gardens - Growing Herbs

Grow Your Own Fresh Herbs - Container Gardening

More recently as I teach Container Garden classes I'm asked specifically about growing herbs.  In particular small urban patio gardens and families with small children seem to enjoy this activity. I am an avid consumer of fresh, home grown herbs! Photo of harvest of mint, dill, parsley! Herb container gardening is a great way for new gardeners to dig in. There is a great satisfaction in serving delights from your garden. Plus the fragrance from herbs is wonderful. There are many herbs that I always grow in container (aka mint!) This year I'm putting more herbs and veggies in containers to make it easier to access from my kitchen! Planning container gardens is one of the many tasks on my Spring to-do list for my cold climate garden. 

Overwintering annuals - great rewards

This week I will start planting the containers that will go by my front door and on my back porch. I have been known to go a bit crazy with container gardens, but this year I promise restraint :)  The most fun will be the containers with Corn by the front door - lots of drama and I hope people are thinking "is that corn?" 

Luckily for me, a few years ago I started overwintering my containers and so now I have lots of great plants to start with already.  I regularly overwinter the following plants:
- Geraniums
- Tender Grasses (See this blog post on grasses)
- "Spikes"
- Coleus  

It all a started with the Spikes. I'm sure you have seen these available at your garden center - fairly small and not so expensive. They are "pushed" as accent plants for containers. My problem was that everything else in the container would always grow so fast - that in a month or so, the Spike Plant was lost in the growth.  So, one year I decided to put that container into the basement and keep it over the winter. The Spike survived and today I have the very large specimen plant you see in the photo. It's turned into a focal point for my garden (not where it's placed in the photo.) And it still stays in a container.  Take a look below at how brilliant these little spikes can become! It's hard to tell but this is a 14 inch white pot, and the spike is now about 3 1/2 feet tall!  Check the size relative to the garden bench.

Impact of Overwintering Annuals (In containers)
Left side - as purchased, Right Side - after 3 yrs overwintering

Here are a few of my lessons' learned from over wintering annuals in containers. 

• Insects - check the container carefully for insects and if you need, spray with insecticidal soap (a few times over a week or so ) before bringing inside.
• Light - If possible place plants near a sunny window or I have a friend who uses grow lights (I'm to frugal to do that!)  
• Pruning - I cut back the annual (except in the case of a spike type plant) to reduce foliage to perhaps 1/3 or 1/2 the final summer size. This depends on your light. It's got to get cut back so it won't get leggy and stressed.  I cut back a few weeks before I want to put it inside the house.
• Re-potting before winter - I try to take the plants out of the container, check the soil and perhaps amend, then put them back in the same pot. I'm not 100% of this step, sometimes I just haul it inside as is!
• Fertilizer/Water - as you would for your house plants. I try to fertilize a bit more aggressively as the spring gets closer. This corresponds to more light and my plants get a boost before I push them back outside. 

By early spring, your Coleus could be over a foot tall.  Impatiens can be overwintered too and they can get very large. Geraniums grow easily indoors in containers; I minimize flowers and really cut these back for winter.  Geraniums and coleus I prune back a few times during the winter to get branching and prevent straggly growth. The coleus I also start from these cuttings.

So just think -it's easy to do, you get to garden all winter, it saves money, and you have awesome plants early in the season.  So as you plan your garden in the spring - think about what you can save over until the fall. Or if you are reading this in fall, think about what you can try to save. 

Don't worry if the first time or the plant you chooses doesn't survive the winter. Trial and error happened with me too. :)

Listening to the birds sing today!

Teresa Marie

Vegetable Container Gardens - Growing Sweet Corn

I have often had the pleasure of teaching Container Garden classes across the Chicago area. Frequently I'm asked specifically about growing vegetables.  I too am a fan of fresh home-grown produce!  I just received my first seed catalog and I've already started planning for next year...I'm planing corn but not in rows. :) Planning what to grow and where is a key activity in a gardener's spring garden to-do list. BTW, here's my running spring garden check-list. 

Sweet Corn fresh from the garden

Families with children can use this as a great teaching moment. Kids get excited about growing edible plants. When my kids were younger they liked planting seeds, seeing them sprout, and watching plants and fruits/vegetables grow. It's even more fun when they recognize the seed as well as the edible result. 

Corn is one of the oldest and most hybridized edible plants. Corn as we know it today is the result of generations of careful cultivation.  For gardeners that means many choices - maybe too many. I look for something sweet or decorative/color and is a dwarf variety which will grow easier in a small space.

VARIETY:  Most seed companies offer dwarf corn varieties for container growing. I like to look for early varieties, and those under 6 ft tall. Yield is highly variable - bee sure to pick a variety that yields more than one ear per plant. This also helps with self pollination. Best results will come with more than 6-8 plants, planted densely. A larger grouping ensures complete pollination.  A few to consider, space saving varieties, Golden Bantam, Kandy Korn, Precocious, Strawberry popcorn, Early Sunglow, Trinity, Casino, Sugar Pearl, Tom Thumb Popcorn, On-The-Deck Sweet Corn 

CONTAINER: Corn roots typically have an effective depth of 12 inches, although in the field some roots can reach 2 feet deep. So in container gardens corn doesn't need a particularly large pot - a 24" container should be sufficient.  I like to use the half a wine barrel or tub as well! Gives a bigger harvest and has needed weight. A key consideration is the resulting height of the plants - a 4 - 7 Ft dwarf corn plant will be 5 - 9 Ft. high in the container.  It's a great accent piece and very architectural!  Yet think about container placement as well as wind protection!

CULTIVATION:   For corn, use standard potting soil and make sure to add lots of slow release fertilizer. Plant corn seeds about 4 inches apart, covering them with 1 inch of soil. When the sprouts are ~6 inches tall, thin to about eight inches apart.  Then on, make sure the corn has a good supply of food and water. Never let it completely dry out. Provide fertilizer once a week or bi-weekly. When the plants tassel, help them pollinate by gently shaking the stalks or hand pollinate if you have multiple varieties and then detassle the corn to prevent cross pollination.

WIND PROTECTION:  I've heard of three options for protecting corn, tall flowers and bulbs from bending over in high winds.  I've tried mounding and rebar options with good success.  If your corn does get knocked down, and if the stalks are sound - just prop it back up, pack the soil around it, and it should keep growing.

You don't need a field to enjoy sweet corn fresh!

1. WEIGHT:  Add stones and other weight to the container to keep the container itself from blowing over (this will not stop the plant from blowing over however)
2. MOUNDING: Just bank up some dirt around the bottom of the corn when it gets about 8 inches tall. Cover it about half way up the stalk. This will help keep the corn stable, grow a stronger root system and will "feed" the plant more nutrients. It can be challenging in a container, you may try pulling a fabric over the container (similar to the nylon mentioned in rebar) to keep the soil mounded.
3. REBAR - This works best for raised beds, but could be modified for container groupings. Get 1/2" rebar that is about 4 ft long (longer for taller varieties). Pound rebar in each corner of your garden area (or edges of the container, works well with wine barrels) Plant the corn.  After it sprouts but before it gains real height, take nylon netting (Home Depot or Lowes) and stretch it tightly across the rebar. Position the nylon at 1.5'ft.and at  3' level (1/3 and 2/3 your corn height). The corn will grow through the netting. The rebar and netting provide support to prevent wind damage.

I'm now thinking about sweet corn with butter, corn bread, corn salad - and can't wait to get some fresh.  My grand father used to walk through the field and pull corn off the stalk and taste it raw! 

Save some seeds for the next year! Oh an if you are interested check out this blog post on growing herbs in containers.

Teresa Marie

Clever Idea - Container Water Retention system on the cheap

Folks - Check out this blog post on the use of diapers (yup, diapers) as water retention additives to containers.  I have often looked at purchasing these polymer additives in the store. It can range from $13 - $49/pound! You know diapers are maybe $1 each.

The question though is what do you do with the diapers afterwards - I guess it's just garbage. Maybe too many of them in the landfill already...

Anyway, thought it was Cool! It appeals to the frugal gardener in me!

http://www.ladybirdln.com/2011/05/my-dirty-secret-revealed.html


Today I noticed garlic and other spring perennials going crazy in my garden. Darn Climate Change! It does feel like Spring in Chicago. I'm reviewing seed catalogs and starting a landscaping class on Saturday! So excited to get a long range plan going.

Sign along!

Teresa

Overwintering Tender Ornamental Grasses

I absolutely adore ornamental grasses - either in containers or planted in the garden. I have several hardy varieties - Zebra Grass and a Pampas grass. The latter that was a gift from my father which I divide every year and give away :)  I purchase several annual grasses each year - and this year decided to try to overwinter a few in containers over the winter. 

Here is the process I followed.  Just posting this now, since I'm starting to see some new growth in the containers so I'm sure the process will be successful. 

1) Get a good section of the grass and plant in containers with appropriate potting soil mixture. I did this about midway through the summer to allow them to grow into the pots. Also purchased a few grasses late in the season and did not plant them. Those are the ones in the photos. These were $20/each in springtime and only $3/each in the fall!  If you repot grasses make sure you don't pull any diseased stalks or stems. 

2) In late fall or early winter you need to prune the grass. I wanted to save the grass so I followed a process of a) tying up the grass b) then shearing off leaving only 1-2 inches above the crown.  Once I had cut it down I then looked through to carefully remove damaged stems or stalks.  

Purchased Fall - 2011

Annual Grass - Prep for Shearing

3) Place the containers indoors near a light source. Here I put mine in a basement window with other plants I'm over wintering.  I make sure to water these regularly to keep the roots alive. I am not applying any fertilizer now. I don't want them to get too big right now - I think it will be difficult to have them grow full and lush with so little light. After 2 months, there are new shoots growing. In the spring I'll start to hit it with fertilizer and then move outdoors.  

Overwintering Annual Grass Indoors

Decorating with Grass!

As an added bonus - I saved the top of the grass that was sheared off - and used it as decoration inside! Adding a nice natural element into my eclectic room!


Happy Gardening!

Teresa Marie