When space is tight, a simple, tiered shelving system for your containers can be at total game changer.  You'll be able to grow a LOT more in the same space. You'll find it easier to keep pots organised. And, by creating different levels, you'll create a more visually appealing garden than one all on the ground.  You'll also often find that the higher levels get more sun than pots on the ground, particularly in spaces that are partly shaded by walls.   I posted recently about how to build your own wooden growing ladder. These are great - but they do take more time and eff ..read more

I asked our community of container gardeners (on our Facebook Page, our Facebook Community and Instagram) about the edible plants they find easy to grow in containers and that are also hard to buy in the shops. Between you all, you came up with this wonderful list of 50 plants. Thanks so much!  Please do share which of these are your favourite 'hard to buy / easy to grows' in the comments. And, any more suggestions to add to the list? I'm sure there must be! One of the great pleasures and benefits of growing at home is being able to eat a more diverse range of foods and flavours. It ..read more

Imagine transforming a cramped balcony or a tiny yard into a lush, vertical garden. Growing ladders are a wonderful way to make this a reality.  The many benefits of Growing ladders Growing ladders are a simple and highly effective because:  They make excellent use of both vertical and horizontal space. Where you once had three pots, you might fit twelve pots on a growing ladder with three shelves (three on the ground and three on each shelf). The higher shelves will often get more light than pots on the ground. This is particularly useful in less sunny spaces - for example yards wi ..read more

As you may have already discovered, seeds from different suppliers can look very similar, but the quality - and how well they germinate and grow - can vary a lot. Some seeds will grow into strong, vigorous plants and some will not. Some may not even germinate well. So it's really worth starting with the best seeds you can get. This post will help you understand a bit more about why some seeds perform better than others. And offers tips on how to find good quality seeds.   Why Look for Good Quality Seeds? Seeds hold all the genetic information plants need to grow into strong, healthy ..read more

I like eating root veg but I don't grow them much as some other vegetables, mainly because each plant can only be harvested once. Unlike runner beans or tomatoes, which you can pick over several weeks, even months. Another reason I'm hesitant to grow some root veg is that I've rarely had consistent success with beetroot, radish or carrots. It remains a mystery to me why their roots sometimes swell up beautifully and sometimes don’t…. Is it to do with spacing, soil quality, sun, watering, pot size, feeding - or a perhaps a mix of all these? In an attempt to learn more about them, I dedicated on ..read more

With the rising price of fresh, high quality fruit and veg in the shops, can 'Grow Your Own' help us to eat better for less? And, if so, how much space do we need to grow enough food to make a difference to what we eat? To help find out what is possible, I thought it would be fun and interesting to do a small trial. So I set about seeing how much salad I could grow in a space of about 3 x 3 foot over six weeks.  I sowed six old mushroom trays with microgreens on 7 September, and picked salad from them until 21 October. Although the weather wasn't ideal (and better suited to growing microg ..read more

If you like chillies - and you have enough sun to grow them in - they are a brilliant choice for containers and small spaces. In this post you can find out why I find them so good, my three favourite varieties (the choice of variety makes a big difference), and four wonderful sauces / pickles to make with your harvests. I'd love to learn about your favourite chilli varieties and homemade chilli sauces in the comments below. Chillies are brilliant to grow when space is limited because: The best varieties have more subtleties of warmth and flavour than any you can buy. You can grow very hot chi ..read more

No Dig gardening is traditionally practised in the ground, often (but not always) in raised beds. Awareness of No Dig gardening has risen in recent years, thanks to the work of inspiring growers like Huw Richards, Charles Dowding and Stephanie Hafferty. But does it also work in containers? Here I share my thoughts and experience. I would love to hear yours in the comments below. The benefits of No Dig The biggest benefit of No Dig gardening in the ground - besides less work - is reduced disturbance of the microbial life in the soil. Disturbance, unfortunately, harms important fungal netwo ..read more

I'm always on the look out for edibles that are super productive and worthwhile in very small spaces. A new one (for me, at least) to add to the list is spring onions / scallions. To get a brilliant harvest they need to be sown close - check out the video below for a more visual account of my adventure with spring onions! Scallions / spring onions are an excellent crop to grow in containers at home. You can pop out and pick however many you need, whenever you want. This is infinitely better, in my opinion, than buying a bunch from the supermarket. Not only is the flavour and texture superior ..read more

How far apart do you need to space seeds and plants in a container? Do you follow the guidelines on the side of the seed packet – or can veg in containers be grown closer together? This is something I've tried to work out over the years. After playing around with different spacings, I've come up with some general rules of thumb that I hope you will find helpful. After playing around with different spacings, I 'discovered' some general rules of thumb. The spacings depend on whether you are sowing leaf, root, or fruiting vegetables - and what size of veg you want to grow - as summarised in the t ..read more