Containers offer convenient gardens

Fresh strawberries, herbs or tomatoes -- doesn't the thought just make your mouth water? You usually think of picking these fresh from a garden in the back yard. But if you live in an apartment, a condo or a duplex, you may not have the space for a traditional garden. Or you may not have the time or energy to cultivate that backyard patch. In either case, you probably think that you will have to rely on gifts from gardening friends so you can enjoy these delectable delicacies.

Don't fret! You too can go outside your door and pick fresh strawberries, as well as herbs and vegetables, pop them in your mouth, and grin from ear to ear as the flavor tickles your taste buds. Container gardening allows even apartment dwellers to enjoy the fruits of the earth.

I have written about container gardening before. Most gardening and landscaping magazines are giving more attention to this popular gardening trend. Therefore, I want to make you aware of the differences between growing plants in containers versus growing them in a backyard garden.

When plants are grown in the backyard garden, they usually get all of the nutrients they need from the soil they grow in. You can supplement the soil with additional nutrients through fertilizers, but without these supplements, your garden plants would probably survive and produce.

In addition, enough water is usually provided through natural rainfall to keep garden plants going throughout the growing season. Of course, you may want to do a little supplemental sprinkling during extremely dry periods in order to ensure higher yields.

As you can see, during most growing seasons, plants growing in a backyard garden can survive and yield fruits and vegetables because nature provides them with all of the required nutrients and moisture. On the other hand, when growing plants in containers, you must provide them with all of the nutrients and moisture they require, not only for them to thrive and produce, but just for them to survive.

An easy plant to grow in a container is the strawberry. If you select an everbearing variety, such as Ozark Beauty, you can have a few fresh strawberries to put on your morning cereal all summer long.

The best container to use for strawberries is, of course, the strawberry jar. You can find these jars made of plastic, ceramic clay, or glazed ceramic clay. I like the glazed jars, because a color can be selected that matches the décor on your patio or porch.

Make sure that your strawberry jar has drainage holes in it. It should also be heavy enough to keep it from blowing over on windy days.

Purchase a soilless potting mix that drains well. Add a cup of agricultural lime to 50 quarts of the potting mix and mix well. The lime will provide the strawberries with needed calcium so that the berries fill out completely. Next add water to the soil. Dampen the soil until it sticks together slightly, or until no dust is apparent when handling.

Begin placing the dampened soil into the strawberry jar. Compact the soil slightly. You don't want the soil to settle after planting. Put enough soil in the jar so that it reaches the lowest opening. Next place one or two strawberry plants through the opening. Make sure all of the roots are inside the jar, and that the crown of the strawberry plant is on the outside of the jar.

Now place more soil in the jar until the soil level reaches the next opening. Again put two more strawberry plants into this opening. Continue until all of the side openings are filled with plants.

Finally, place two or three plants in the top of the jar and finish filling with potting mix. Your strawberry jar is now planted with all of the plants that you will need to provide strawberries all summer long.

Next water the soil of the strawberry jar thoroughly with a solution of high phosphorous soluble fertilizer, such as 9-59-8. Water until excess water pours out of the drainage hole. Make sure you allow plenty of time for all of the excess fertilizer water to drain out.

Place your planted strawberry jar in a sunny location outside on your deck, patio or porch. Try to find a place where the jar gets sun all day long, or at least sun all afternoon long.

Every day, monitor the moisture level of the soil by placing your finger in the potting mix. When the soil is dry, water thoroughly, just like you did when you initially planted the jar. When the soil is wet, don't water. Consistency in checking soil moisture content and watering is extremely important. Remember you are responsible for watering, not Mother Nature, when growing garden plants in a container.

Once every other week, add a soluble fertilizer to your watering can. I would suggest using a 20-20-20 fertilizer one week, and then use a 9-59-8 the next week.

The 20-20-20 and 9-58-8 are source of the major nutrients that your strawberries need to grow and thrive. But they also need some minor elements such as boron and chlorine. Therefore, I would fertilize once a month with fish emulsion. This conglomeration will provide your strawberries with most of those minor elements.

The directions I have given for growing strawberries in containers can also be used with minor differences for growing tomatoes, other vegetables and fruits. Follow these directions and you should have the sweet taste of strawberries available to you all summer long.

Send your gardening and landscape questions to Paul Schnare at P.O. Box 699; Cape Girardeau, Mo. 63702-0699 or by e-mail to news@semissourian.com.