A Step-by-Step Guide
You don’t need a big backyard, a lot of time, or even a green thumb to grow your own fruits and veggies! Growing food in containers is an excellent way to garden almost anywhere. Even if you only have access to small spaces like an apartment balcony or condo patio, you can grow some produce in containers. If you’re new to gardening or maybe just looking for a smaller-scale container gardening project this year, you may want to consider growing your plants in 5-gallon buckets. These sturdy little buckets are great for many things, including indoor or outdoor plant storage, mixing and storing paint, and now growing plants! When the growing season is over you can cover the potting soil back up and store it for next year’s small space garden.
Step 1: Choose The Right Location for Your Bucket Garden
The first thing you’ll want to do is decide where you’ll be growing your plants. You’ll want to choose a sunny to partly sunny spot that has good drainage. When you’re choosing a container for your garden, make sure the container has proper drainage holes in the bottom, which will help prevent root rot. We recommend drilling five to ten 1/4-inch holes in the bottom and adding an inch of pea gravel before your growth medium.
When growing vegetables, you’ll want to choose a spot that is at least 2-3 feet away from any nearby trees, or buildings, to prevent pests from climbing into your small spaces garden and attacking your plants. If you’re growing vegetables in buckets, you’ll want at least one bucket per plant you’re growing. If you’re growing flowers, you can fit more in a single bucket.
Step 2: Add a Growing Medium to the Buckets
You can use either potting soil or compost to fill your buckets for your new garden. If you’re using compost, you’ll want to mix it with some soil so the compost can hold water. Buckets that are wider than they are deep, are great for growing plants like lettuce, tomatoes, and many other veggies. Keep in mind that if you plan to grow root vegetables, the buckets will need to be placed in an area that receives full sun.
Step 3: Plant Your Veggies and Flowers
After drilling your holes and adding your gravel it is time to add the growth medium. You want to fill the bucket with 3-5 inches of space in the top of your bucket so as it grows and is watered it does not overflow. Now that you have your buckets ready to go, you can start planting. Vegetables like lettuce, tomatoes, and squash all grow best when they are planted directly into the growing medium. Just space your seeds out appropriately and cover them with a thin layer of growing medium, so they can germinate. When sowing seeds for flowers, make sure you plant extra seeds to allow for some to not sprout. You’ll want to thin out the extra flowers as they grow so they don’t crowd out the other plants in the bucket.
Step 4: Water and Care for Your New Garden
Water your plants at least once a week, more often if it’s hot outside. You’ll want to water your plants until you can feel the water draining from the bottom of the buckets. You’ll also want to add a bit of fertilizer to the growing medium once a week. You can use either granulated fertilizer or liquid fertilizer, whichever works best for your growing medium. Now that your small spaces garden is growing, you’ll want to weed regularly so your plants don’t get crowded out. You’ll also want to keep an eye out for pests, like aphids and beetles, which may try to attack your plants. You can control pests with organic sprays and traps.
Container gardening is a great way to grow your own food
whether you only have limited space or want a less demanding gardening experience. 5-gallon buckets are an excellent choice for your small spaces garden. They are easy to acquire and come in a variety of colors, they are great for different growing situations, and they are large enough to yield a decent amount of produce. If you’ve never gardened before, it’s not too late to get started. There are many different gardening methods, and container gardening is a great way to get your feet wet. With a few simple steps, you can easily grow your own food in 5-gallon buckets. I love reusing old buckets as I can cover the soil with the lid and reuse it next season without having to have the ugly look of a plantless pot sitting around.