Container Woes

Of grave disappointment are these three wine barrels. I have yet to grow anything in them that comes close to matching the success I have with plants in the ground.

These carrots and onions have been stuck in this state for a solid month. Not dying but not growing either. I guess I now understand the trials of people who try to garden in poor soil. I'm spoiled with my clay. It holds in nutrients so well that I don't need to fertilize much to get healthy plants. I only need to amend the soil a couple times a year and I'm pretty good to go.

And I'd assumed I could do the same with my containers. I'd made a stew of SuperSoil Potting Soil, steer manure, bone meal, sand...all kinds of good things to plant in. Then I stuck in my plants. And they haven't done much. They grow, but they're small compared to what's growing in the beds. 

So I started reading up on container gardening. I've decided my problem is fertilizer. I guess if I want veggies in containers, I'll need to fertilize weekly. At least, that's what I'm going to try. If I can't get any success doing that, I'm throwing in some geraniums and calling it a day.

I will keep you posted.

Choppin Broccoli!

The summer crop is still hanging in there, but with nighttime temps now dipping down to the mid 40's, I'm not sure how many more weeks I'll be able to stretch it.

For now, I'm enjoying the last of the tomatoes and squash.

The real excitement in the garden is coming from the fall crop I planted mid-August.  Look at these beautiful cabbage plants.

I've only got 3.  I wish I had triple that, but the August garden doesn't allow for much new space.  I might have to work on that next year.

I've got about 10 broccoli plants, and every single one of them is looking spectacular!

I'm probably another 30 days from eating broccoli, but I'll be cutting the first cabbage head for minnestrone soup next weekend for sure!

Love my irises

I want more.  I've planted two more that I just got in the mail.  One is called Paprika, so you can imagine what color that will be.  But until the others bloom, I'll enjoy these purple ones.  Most definitely, I am considering where else in my yard I can start a second collection.