New To Gardening

Oh yes you can definately start some real nice gardens in pots and tubs. I have my own place but I still have plants around in pots and such as when they finish flowering and things I can replace with next lot of plants not just veges either. great to give it a go

i had the same problem as you a year ago so i rented an allotment and the previous years i used large containers and they didnt produce much of a yeild and the quality was poor even the strawberrys did badly, the soil you get on an allotment has been treated for years and is perfect for growing. potatos help your soil by breaking it up i like to plant them in soil that hasnt been planted for a while. i grow my plants from both seed and plugs depending on the time of year and the type of plant for exaple beetroot cannot be transplanted so it has to be sown into the ground at seed.

Yes, you can grow things in tubs and other containers. But if you've never gardened at all before, take the time to learn whatever you can about it. There are gardening web sites as well as good books on the topic. Different kinds of vegetables should be planted at different times of the year, in different locations (some need a lot of sun, some don't). Large plants like squash and melons don't usually do well in containers because they need room to spread out. Potatoes need a lot of room underground, too.

How easy is it to get to your allotment? If it is easy to get to and there is easy access to water and you or someone else) have prepared the soil properly then I say that you have a good chance of succeeding in the allotment. This will also give you a chance to meet other gardeners (newbies as well as more well versed gardeners to exchange information as well as to help in other matters such as security (to help keep theft from taking place by non gardeners that do not want the work but wish to reap the benefits). You might also think about growing a few things in containers at your place. Some plants can grow together so that you can have two or more crops from one container at the same time. Good luck and let us know how you are doing.

I am quite surprised to hear that it has been suggested that "allotment" gardens are a bad idea. In Vancouver, Victoria, B.C. and in most of our cities, there are allotment gardens everywhere, boulevards, roof tops, let your imagination soar. They are very successful and have bonded so many communities, of all backgrounds. Something about gardening that brings us all together on equal ground (no pun intended.) I do a lot of container growing, due to a deer problem, and I have absolutely no problems growing anything from the curcubit family; cucumbers, squashes, even "loofas" in containers. All peppers, & tomatoes whom are happiest with warm/hot roots grow relentlessy in big black pots! I can move these around on my deck to follow the sun. I use old umbrellas to stick in the pots when it rains as we are really subject to "fusillium" and "fusurium" wilt on tomatoes. Old umbrellas I find at "freecycle" stores. 90% of my herbs are grown in containers, too. I find that my plants get spoiled a lot more, being on the deck, as I tend them with morning coffee, and evening cocktail. Happy gardening!

I've always gardened in containers... I had a garden plot for years, but it was too much work! With containers, you work on one at a time, they can be moved, etc... all advantages! Tomatoes work the best, but I also grow every herb you can imagine, a fig tree, peppers, squash and cucumber vines, and edible flowers. I buy plants... I have a short growing season, so its the best way. For potatoes, I'd get something like a big washtub or whiskey barrel, punch the bottom full of holes, and add bagged garden soil or a good mix with time-release fertilizer to about 1/3 the depth of the container. Make sure the pieces you plant have several 'eyes' and you'll have the best chance of good production. Potatoes need to be kept out of sunlight, so as the plants grow, fill the tub with straw instead of piling soil around them ... you'll harvest perfectly clean potatoes! You can put black plastic around the top of the pot to keep it dark... just let the plants poke through. They may not get too big, but they'll be delicious!