CHINESE CONTAINER GARDENS - Growing Chinese Vegetables in Your Own Backyard - page 185

(spring and fall) and allows you to get an early start without taking over every available
surface within your apartment.
Greenhouses are even more expensive but offer even more space. They come in
every size, starting with small units that hold only a few trays and sit up against the
house. That's a subject for a whole different book, though.
Choosing Your Containers
You can't pick your container unless you know what it is to hold, but on the other hand,
you can't plan what to put in your container until you know what you want to grow and
how much room it requires. (For plant requirements, see the container vegetables guide
starting on page 180.)
You can grow plants in anything that will hold a soil mixture and drain excess water
(which usually means punching a few holes in strategic places). Aesthetics aside, a con-
tainer can be many of the things you usually throw away — large yogurt or cottage
cheese containers, milk jugs with the tops cut off, egg cartons (for seedlings), wooden
crates, 5-gallon buckets, and much, much more. Many items discarded because they no
longer perform their original function make ideal containers. A chipped rim may spoil
a piece of pottery, but not if it's completely covered by foliage. Yard sales are a great
place to pick up odd plates for putting underneath pots, as well as baskets and other
decorative vessels to use as disguises for recycled yogurt containers.
Ceramic containers. You can have a more conventional garden with classic clay pots;
these are available in a variety of sizes and range from plain to elaborate and expensive.
Check the decorative types for drainage holes. You can often drill holes in pottery with
a high-speed drill, but there's always a risk of cracking. If you don't want to risk a fa-
vorite piece, use it to hold a smaller pot with good drainage.
Plastic pots. These are the easiest option. Plastic is cheap, easy to clean, readily
available, and lightweight. Weight is especially important for large containers, and for
rooftop gardens or balconies. Plastic pots come in all sizes and colors, though you may
have to hunt around to find the style you want. If you're willing to spend more money,
you can buy plastic pots or other synthetic materials designed to look like terra-cotta, as
well as ornamental planters for more formal situations.
Large-scale pots. For really large containers, plastic whiskey barrels are a good choice.
These are much lighter than wood half-barrels, though you may prefer the look of
wood. With a couple of rocks in the bottom, plastic tubs are just as good as the wooden
ones for support that offsets the bushiest, tallest, most heavily fruited plant. They fit in
equally well with kitchen cast-offs and elegant Chinese porcelain.