Container gardening has many advantages

Small peppers in a pot, cucumbers in a birdbath, tomatoes in a whisky barrel and beets in an old dish. Gardeners are taking to pots because they're practical answers to the rising cost of food and smaller yards. Consider places where pots fit -- balconies, patios, decks, doorsteps or pool sides.

Ashley Summers and I will be showing you how to grow veggies out of pots and other gardening things at 8:30 a.m. Saturday at the Springs Preserve, 333 S. Valley View Blvd.

Summers grows veggies in anything that holds soil and drains. She snoops around garage sales looking for unusual pots. She finds anything that grows in the ground will grow in containers with more flair.

Container gardening offers many advantages:

• Pots are totally portable. You can move plants in and out of the sun and wind, as you have control over the plants' environment.

• You have command over the soil mix by providing exactly what plants require.

• Pots only take a little space, and if that is a problem, go to hanging baskets and turn your patio into a produce market.

• Your choices of man-made pots can turn visitors' heads. Just remember, pots must be large enough to hold plants when fully grown.

Container gardening requires extra care to be successful. Here are some ways to get your desired results:

• Pots must have drainage holes to get rid of excess water and salts. If they don't, drill holes in the bottoms.

• Place broken pottery over holes to prevent soil from eroding.

• Do not use native soil. It's too heavy, and you won't get your desired results.

• Choose a loose, lightweight, organic potting soil and mix perlite into it to improve drainage.

• Be attentive to watering needs. Plants have a limited amount of soil, so thoroughly wet the rootball daily and maybe twice daily during hot weather.

• Plants have different shade tolerance. Mix sun-living plants such as tomatoes and radishes together to get the most out of your pots.

• Plant vegetables closer together than what's done in the garden. They grow upward and outward creating an appearance of great abundance and may trail over the edge for added beauty.

• Use a soluble fertilizer and follow the manufacturer's recommendation.

Someone may ask, "I thought we were suppose to be conserving water? It sounds like you are watering all the time." Here are some ways to reduce watering intervals:

• Use bigger containers. The larger volume of soil dries out slower. And as plants grow, roots fill the soil, so water more often or move them to bigger pots.

• Use glazed clay pots, wood and plastic materials to reduce moisture through the sides of containers.

• Double-pot containers to prevent them from drying out too fast. Nest smaller pots inside larger ones and fill the space between pots to cool roots and slow moisture loss.

• Use drip irrigation and connect the system to a controller, so watering becomes automatic.

Beans, radishes, lettuce and chard adapt well to container gardening. Sow them weekly to harvest longer. Some veggies need staking, while others cascade. Take advantage of those cascading tendencies.

Herbs such as chives, basil, bay, marjoram, thyme, mint, parsley and sage love containers. Place them near the kitchen door for easy access.

Summers stressed the key to success is finding time to spend with your veggies. Container-grown plants do need closer supervision.

IRIS SHOW

Come to the iris show today from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Nevada Garden Club Center located within Lorenzi Park at 3333 W. Washington Ave.. The Las Vegas Iris Society wants you to see its prize-winning irises. Write down those you like, so you can purchase them at its sale in July.

CACTUS & SUCCULENT SALE

The Cactus and Succulent Society of Southern Nevada and Nevada Cooperative Extension are teaming with the College of Southern Nevada's Desert Garden Center to bring you their annual plant sale from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday and April 26 at the garden center, 6221 W. Charleston Blvd. Club members will be selling lots of prize-winning plants, dish gardens and containers for landscape and patio. There will be educational classes and demonstrations. For more information, call 651 5050.

Linn Mills writes a garden column each Sunday. You can reach him at linn.mills@ springspreserve.org or call him at 822-7754.