LITMIR.BIZ

      TIP: If you have large enough containers, you can interplant shorter or trailing plants with taller ones like tomatoes, for extra visual appeal. Even add some flowers. (This squash plant looks lonely!)

       Seeds or plants? Which are better?

      It all depends upon the plant and your point of view. There are some people who think seeds are the only way to garden, but some plants, like tomatoes and peppers, take a while to grow before they begin producing fruit. While I do start heirloom tomato seeds indoors, I also buy some hybrid plants from my local nursery. You’re a gardener the moment your hands touch the soil, even if you only buy plants.

       What to grow?

      Grow what you love to eat. Radishes may be quick and easy, but if you don’t like them, why waste the space? In my family, we like lettuce, spinach, spring onions, tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, okra and corn. All of these, except for okra and corn, can easily be grown in containers. Before heading to the nursery, make a list of those vegetables you love to eat and grow those first. If you have a hankering to try something new, go for it, too. A few years ago, my daughter, Claire, and I discovered we love kale chips, especially homemade ones. The kale we found in the grocery store was large and tough. We began growing ‘Toscano’ or dinosaur kale, and we now have some in raised beds during the cool seasons. Kale, like lettuce, chard and spinach, is easy to grow in containers, and using seed for these leafy crops works well. You can also buy plants if you want to jumpstart the season. We sow kale in late fall, and it often overwinters in our warm climate with cover. We also do an early spring sowing in February.

       What about hanging baskets?

      Use hanging baskets for trailing plants like strawberries (three plants per basket), along with certain cherry tomatoes like ‘Red Robin’ and ‘Losetto.’ You can even grow runner beans and trailing squash in hanging baskets; their stems will trail down the sides. Fair warning: I wasn’t successful with those trendy containers that grew tomatoes upside down. You might have better luck.

      In a hot climate, hanging baskets dry out faster than containers on the ground, so choose those that are solid or are lined with actual moss, not coir. If hanging baskets dry out, your plants will be stunted and may not fruit well.

       Deciphering a Seed Packet

      (what does all this stuff mean?)

      Some seed companies give you more information than others. Two of the best packets on the market are those from Botanical Interests and Renee’s Garden. Both companies offer great seeds, too. Each approaches the seed packet a bit differently, though. Here's BI's approach.

       FRONT:

      At the top of the package is the plant’s common name: LETTUCE Leaf. Right away, you know you’re growing a romaine or butterhead type of lettuce. Below that is the cultivar or selection name, ‘Red Sails.’ And then the botanical name, Lactuca sativa, not necessary but it certainly doesn’t hurt, either. Read your seed packets, and before long, Latin will be tripping off your tongue. Just kidding. Still, when you grow flowers and ornamental plants, botanical names are very helpful.