Growing vegetables in containers are very easy if you know which vegetables to grow. This is a great opportunity for people who love gardening to grow vegetables without worrying about weather changes. When you grow a vegetable garden, another problem that appears is that of critters.
It is safe growing vegetables in containers rather than in a garden. This is very easy since the containers will not take up too much space. You can even change the positions of the containers whenever you want. This will be impossible to do in a vegetable garden where the plants will be fixed.
If you want to know which vegetables to grow in containers, we have a detailed list. Know how to take care of them, which is the right time to grow different vegetables in containers.
Table of Contents
Vegetables To Grow In Pots
1. Spinach (Spinacia Oleracea)
Spinach is a vegetable that contains high nutrients and can be grown both during summer and winter conditions. You will find a high dose of Folic Acid, Vitamin C, B9, and B6 in this vegetable. Spinach is the perfect vegetable to use in fish or meat dishes and as a stand-alone dish. It is not too hard to grow spinach in pot containers.
They can do well in partial shade; hence, you can place the pot on your windowsill or any other place indoors. You will need a container that is about 6 to 8 inches deep for planting spinach. The depth of the pot need not be much, but the width of the container should be more. You could also choose a window box of 5 gallons for planting spinach.
For best results, planting the vegetable in early spring or late fall is advisable. Make sure that each of the Spinach plants is placed 6 to 8 inches apart in the pots. You will need to water the plants immediately after being planted in the pot to thrive easily. Moreover, they have to be watered for about 15 seconds at least twice a week. You can start picking the plant from the pot about 30 days after it has been planted.
2. Lettuce/Salad Greens (Lactuca Sativa)
If you are looking to plant another nutritious vegetable, then lettuce is the perfect option to grow in containers. This plant is perfect for summer conditions and is rich in manganese and fiber. After the last frost, lettuce can be planted immediately in the pot and any time in the summer or early fall. Salad greens or lettuce can be used on sandwiches, poultry, or meat dishes and salads.
These lettuce greens grow best in containers that are placed in partial sun. You will need to use fertile and moist soil in the pot for the effective growth of lettuce. The minimum depth of the pot for this vegetable would be about 6 inches deep. You need a wide container as well, just like for spinach growth. Moreover, these plants should be placed about 4 to 6 inches apart from each other.
Frequent watering is essential to ensure that the soil stays moist at all times. However, you need to be very cautious about overwatering the growing vegetable in the pot. Twice or thrice a week of watering is enough to keep the soil moist and enhance the growing phase. Ensure that there is no deep water accumulation on the container’s bottom to grow the best vegetables.
3. Asparagus (Asparagus Officinalis)
Asparagus is a perennial vegetable that you can grow in pots without much effort. This vegetable is a great source of folate, iron, copper, Vitamin K, E, A, and C. You can plant this vegetable using pots as soon as the last frost of the spring ends. Asparagus is mainly consumed as a side dish with any entrée and mixed with butter.
Generally, asparagus is very high priced in the market. If you love this vegetable, buying it frequently from the market is not feasible, but growing one in a pot is. This plant is very hardy, and you do not need to spend much time on its maintenance. The pot width should be so that it can grow freely, but the depth of the pot needs not to be more than 4 to 6 inches.
If you do not have room to place the container outdoors, then you can keep it indoors. This plant can survive well in partial shade and does not require more than a few sun hours every day. You can follow the watering schedule as other container growing vegetables about two or three times a week.
4. Onions (Allium Cepa)
Traditional onions are very high in Vitamin C, folic acid, and fiber. They are added to almost every dish and have a high demand. When you can think of growing such a high requirement plant in a pot, it saves much money. Moreover, it is not too expensive or time-consuming to take care of a vegetable like an onion.
Onions are mainly a vegetable for cold weather and are only suitable for growing in containers during spring. They require adequate space for growth in the pot; hence you need to opt for a wide container garden. The depth of the container garden could be around 5 to 6 inches. Place them about six inches apart from each other to get the desired space for growth in the container garden.
You will need to water them adequately after planting them in pots. After that, you can maintain a watering schedule once a week to keep the soil in the pots moist. This vegetable needs full sun for growth; hence you need to place the pots outdoors. You can start picking up the vegetable about 90 days after it has been planted and when you see them growing. Since this is an annual plant, you need to be very sure of the vegetable’s planting time.
5. Green Onions (Allium Fistulosum)
Green Onions are perennial plants with high nutritious values and are among the best vegetables to grow for container gardening. This plant is a rich source of Riboflavin, Folic Acid, Vitamin K, A, and C. They have to be planted at the end of the spring frost. Since green onions are hardy plants, they do not need much maintenance and care while growing in pots. However, you will need to place this plant outdoor in your garden where it is exposed to full sun.
Green onions are used in several poultry and meat dishes along with vegetable dishes and taboule. You should buy a very wide container and have proper space to plant sufficient vegetables in your home garden. There are three ways to grow this vegetable in your home garden: from sets, leftover green onion roots, and seeds.
Depending on how much time you can invest in growing vegetables in the home garden, you may choose these three types. The easiest way for growing vegetables like these would be from leftover green onion roots, but seeds and sets also do not take much time. The watering schedule is the same as that of an onion which is once every week. You can pick the onions after about 90 days from planting in the container garden.
6. Radishes (Raphanus Sativus)
Radishes are one of the easiest vegetables to grow in pots. They provide some high nutritional value such as Potassium, Vitamin C, and Folate. Radishes are hard vegetables that are grown in the late summer and early spring. They are annual plants that require minimal care and maintenance.
Radishes are used in vegetable salad or paired with chicken and cheese. You will require a very wide container for planting these vegetables and has a depth of about 6 to 8 inches. The depth of the plants need not be more than 6 inches. However, you have to place each of the plants about 6 inches apart from each other in the pot garden.
Radishes can grow very well in partial sun. Hence you can place them on your window sill. This is great for people who have a hard time finding space outdoors in their actual garden to keep their containers. You can maintain a watering schedule of once a week so that the soil stays moist but does not overflow. Since this is a cold vegetable, it does not require much water, or it may damage.
7. Sweet Peppers/Hot Peppers (Capsicum Annum)
Peppers are known for growing widely in most households since they are very easy to grow in pots. You can grow both sweet and hot peppers in containers. Not only are they widely needed for most dishes, but they also look very good. Peppers are very beautiful, especially certain colors like purple or orange sweet peppers.
You can plant them in grow boxes, but the best way to grow them is to use very large containers. They require much to grow, and a small container will restrict their growth. You will need to spread the seeds properly in the container and make sure that it is watered properly. The container you choose should have a good drainage system so that the water does not accumulate underneath.
You need to check that the potting mix you use is slightly moist and not very wet or even dry. The best thing about growing hot peppers and sweet peppers in containers is that they can be moved indoors during story weather. Generally, you will need to find space for the container outdoors where it can receive abundant sunlight.
8. Tomatoes (Solanum Lycopersicum)
A very popular vegetable that you will commonly find in most households for container gardening is tomatoes. Some people grow cherry tomatoes while some choose other types of tomatoes. Since most tomatoes take up too much time for maintenance while container gardening, it is better to opt for grape or cherry tomatoes. You can use cheery tomatoes in vegetable dishes and salads along with making sauces and pasta with them.
Cherry tomatoes are very high in Folate, Vitamin C, and Potassium. You can grow tomatoes one month after the frost of the last spring. The planting of tomatoes should never be done when there frost or even slight coldness in the weather. This will kill the plant immediately, and you will again have to wait for the right season.
For planting cherry tomatoes, you will require a container that is about 8 to 10 inches deep. Ensure that the seeds are placed about 14 inches apart to have enough space for the vegetables to grow. You will need to water the plant twice or thrice in one week. Moreover, the plant needs full sun, so you need to place the container outdoors.
9. Kale (Brassica Oleracea var. Sabellica)
Another hard and cold greens vegetable is kale that needs to be planted immediately in the early summer or late spring frost. This is also a very popular vegetable that most households grow in pots. Kale is a rich source of iron, protein, vitamins, and fiber. This vegetable is mostly used in entrée dishes, salads, and smoothies. Make sure you start growing vegetables in containers at the right time, or the plant will die.
The container that you choose should be about 6 inches deep. However, the container’s width should be more since there should be 6 inches distance between the plants. This plant can grow well in partial shade. It means you can keep the container indoors and expose it to sunlight every day for a certain period.
The pot that you use for this purpose should have a good drainage system. There should be no accumulation of water in the pot or destroy the plant growing in containers. You can plant any variety of kale that you want but ensure that the maintenance is not much. This is extremely important if you have a very busy schedule and cannot spend much time looking after the plant growing in containers.
10. Beans (Phaseolus Vulgaris)
Beans are highly nutritious greens and one of the perfect and best vegetables to grow in pots very easily. They provide your body with potassium, folate, and fiber. There are many different types of beans in the market, like standard green beans, pole beans, etc. Though you can plant pole beans or any other type of beans, the easiest would be to pick green beans or large ones.
Green beans are used as a side dish for entrees, pasta, or even salad. Some people cook long bean dishes, but that is very rare. No matter how you serve green beans, planting and growing them is very easy. After the last frost, you will need to wait for a month to plant beans, or you could go for the early summer period.
You need to choose a container that is about 3 inches deep. The container’s width for growing this variety should be big since you need to plant the beans about 3 to 4 inches apart from each other. They would need to be placed outdoors since they require full sun. Without the full sun, these plants will not thrive easily and will not last very long.
11. Peas (Pisum Sativum)
Peas are planted during the early spring period and the fall when the weather is cooler. There are three varieties of this vegetable that you could pick – Snow Peas, Sugar Snap Peas, and English Peas. You can use these vegetables for succession planting since they make the soil more enriched with nitrogen. Based on the variety of pea plants that you will be planting, some support would be required.
You can plant these vegetables in the early spring and keep them in full sun. They take about 60 days to start producing based on the variety and stop producing when the weather gets warm. You will need to water the pea plant a minimum of about twice or thrice in one week. Watering should have a proper schedule so that the soil is not under-watered or overwatered.
Once the plant stops producing, you can pick them out and then plant some other vegetables in the same container. The nitrogen produced by the peas will be beneficial for the next vegetable that you plant in the container. Make sure you grow peas in loamy and enriched soil with a container that has the perfect drainage.
12. Potatoes (Solanum Tuberosum)
The potatoes you grow in pots at home will taste much different than the potatoes you purchase from the market. They taste better, unlike the grocery store ones, which can sometimes be bitter with high water content and earthy flavor. If you have the effort and patience to grow potatoes, your minimum efforts will have a perfect reward with high-quality potatoes.
You will be a high amount of water and soil to grow potatoes in pots, and the maintenance is also high. The container you will grow the potatoes in will need to have proper protection against blight and fungus. This is because in-ground plants like potatoes are quite prone to fungus. That is why there should be an additional protection level in the container where you grow your potato garden.
You will require loamy soil to grow potatoes and a container that has proper deep drainage. If water accumulated in the soil, then the potatoes will get damaged. Moreover, you will need to ensure that the plant gets proper sunlight while gardening in the pot. Place the container outdoors so that the plant stays exposed to sunlight all through the day, like in your garden. You should never over-water the potatoes and maintain a proper watering schedule.
13. Eggplant (Solanum Melongena)
Eggplant is one more vegetable that does not need much effort from your end. This is also one of the easiest vegetables that can be grown in containers. You can choose a planter size according to your wish but make sure that you do not over-fill each planter with a huge amount of seeds. The seeds should be distributed, keeping a proper distance between them.
Eggplants are very nutritious and are liked by most people. They are added to many dishes and also made as a solo dish. The container’s depth that you choose for growing the eggplant seeds should be about 5 inches deep. This will ensure that there is not much crowding in the gardening container between the plants.
It is best to use clay gardening containers since they provide heat to the vegetable, which is good for effectively growing the eggplant. The plant should not be exposed to cold weather and should always be kept warm. That is why you cannot place the container outside during winter. Make sure you give the support of a bean pole as the plant starts growing.
14. Cucumbers (Cucumis Sativus)
Cucumbers are vegetables that grow very fast and are also easy to plant in containers. They love the water, which means you will need to water them quite often. Despite this, they do not need any extensive maintenance and are quite easy to grow. It is best to plant them in ceramic pots or large plastic containers that can retain the soil’s moisture to thrive better.
Cucumbers also thrive in heat, and growing them in containers will provide them with this heat. You can grow two major varieties of cucumber in pots that are vining and bush. There are other cucumber varieties, some of which are used for pickling or added to salads. No matter which cucumber plants you choose to grow, they can do well in containers.
Cucumbers require full to partial sunlight no matter which variety you choose. This means you need to keep all the varieties exposed to the sun but not for long hours. Since they love heat, exposure to the sun is necessary. However, too much exposure will dry up the soil, and the plant will not get water. The best thing is to keep the container in a place where it received an equal amount of shade and sunlight.
15. Squash (Cucurbita)
Squash can be grown very well in containers, especially if it is summer squash. The best thing about squash is that it can be grown at any place. That is why if you are planning to grow it in a container, you do not have to put in much effort. All you need are some seeds, the right container, and you are good to go. This is a very versatile plant that will give you continuous produce.
Squash blossoms are also edible and look beautiful. Generally, squashes will require a large space; hence the container needs to be quite large. You need to make sure that there is good-quality soil with good exposure to light. The plant also needs consistent feeding and watering for proper growth.
You can also grow winter squash easily, but look for smaller types, or the container might get toppled. The squash has to be harvested regularly as it starts growing so that the weight does not take down the plant. You can get around three squashes in one week and take them off before they become too long, and new growth will start.
Summing Up
Different varieties of vegetables are not the only things that you could pick for growing in containers. You could also pick out different varieties of herbs that would last for a certain time and be useful in food preparation. No matter which vegetables or herbs you choose to plants make sure you take care of them. Growing herbs and vegetables in containers is a very easy way to establish a small home garden.
James Fields is the founder of Gardener to Farmer. His passion for gardening goes back to his childhood days when he would visit his grandfather during the holidays and help him with the plants in the backyard. This has now translated to creating a dependable resource for gardening.