Springtime is Green Thumb Time

To my great disappointment, I am not able to have an in-ground garden in this year. Circumstances have conspired against me and it just wasn’t practical. After several years of struggling to grow vegetables in planters, I had finally graduated to a wonderful raised bed garden in my back yard in Shelton. 

But alas, it was only to last one season because I moved to Gig Harbor the following spring. So back to the “patio garden” for me. I’m just going to make the best of it and try to learn from my past mistakes. 

I’ve read books and articles about raising vegetables in planters and they make it sound easy. It’s not rocket science but it does take some creativity and patience. I have come to the conclusion that my biggest problem in the past was using containers that were too small. That and not watering often enough, especially during the warmest days of summer (we’re still going to have one of those this year, right?) So this time I set out to find big containers. 

I found them and then found out what they cost. Wow. If you plan on doing this year after year, it would make sense to invest in them. But I am hoping to have a raised bed garden again by next spring so it wasn’t the right choice for me. 

I was off to find inexpensive alternatives. I did some online searches and asked around a bit. I found some great ideas but nothing that really worked for me. I went to a local thrift store and roamed the aisles, looking for inspiration. 

In the back of the store, I found a pile of baskets of all shapes and sizes. Eureka! I love baskets and have been collecting Longaberger baskets for years. Of course I would never use one of those for a planter! But at the thrift store, I purchased a variety of them ranging in price from 99 cents to $4.99. 

Once home, I lined them with plastic (re-purposed plastic grocery bags) then cut little slits all over the bottom of the bags for drainage. I filled them with potting soil, and I am ready to garden. 

So far this year I have planted several tomato plants, a variety of lettuces and carrots. I started some parsley, chives and thyme in my kitchen window about a month ago and have planted them outside now along with some rosemary purchased at the Farmers Market. 

My favorite herb, basil, stays in my kitchen as it seems to like that better. Plus it’s close by when I am cooking! I have started some cucumber and zucchini seeds inside to give them a little head start and will be putting them outside in baskets in the next few weeks.  

I may be adding more soon but I am trying to keep it simple as we plan to be traveling quite a bit this summer. I need to keep it manageable. I’m going to be posting updates on my garden as I muddle through it and I would love to hear from other backyard gardeners out there. 

What are your favorite things to grow? Any tips or techniques you can share? I look forward to hearing your gardening stories!