It’s so easy — and so satisfying
Plant just one tall vegetable, such as eggplant or pepper, in a pot with a few small herbs or greens. Fruiting vegetables do best without too much competition for water and nutrients.
Higher Aim
Why waste precious real estate when you’re gardening vertically? A steel trellis in this 37×17×17-inch planter holds pole beans upright, leaving room in front for shrubs and trailing crops.
Mini Garden
Try this combination for a vegetable garden that thrives in a small space
A. ‘Violet Pod’ Pole Bean
The purple pods make them easy to spot when picked. Harvest daily to keep production going. The purple color turns green when cooked.
B. Oregano
For best flavor, harvest when the tiny flower buds begin to form. Continue to prune the plant throughout the summer. Oregano is a hardy perennial for zone 5.
C. ‘Sweet Taste’ Pepper
The small 18- to 24-inch plants are laden with sweet yellow, orange, red, and purple fruits. Make sure the plants get regular water and a diluted liquid fertilizer.
D. Lemon Thyme
The flavor of this herb is a combination of lemon and traditional thyme. Lemon thyme is less hardy than English or French thyme, typically surviving the winter to zone 7.
E. LACINATO KALE
The blue-green leaves are very tender when harvested at 8-10 inches long. Harvest from the base of the plant first and move up as it grows. After a frost, the flavor becomes sweeter.
2. What’s for dinner tonight? Here’s an idea:
Serve tomato and basil bruschetta with a simple side salad of bell peppers and Swiss chard—a healthy flavor that will keep you going all summer long from a 16-inch planter. Lots in a Box Try this combination for a vegetable garden that needs room to grow
A. CHERRY STUFFER PEPPER
The small plants produce sweet, stubby, grillable 2-inch peppers for weeks.
B. Purple Basil
These flavorful leaves bring dark drama to containers. Also consider tall green Genovese basil for this container addition.
C. 'Rainbow Mix' Swiss Chard
Colorfully veined leaves in red, yellow, orange and pink atop stems. Chard rolls more slowly in warmer weather than lettuce.
D. 'Tumbling Tom' Tomato
There's no need to staking these trailing cherries. Choose a tall container or hanging basket to accommodate the 30-inch vines. Or, as we did here, prune regularly.
3. Single Sense
Plant just one tall vegetable, like eggplant or peppers, in a container with a few smaller herbs or greens. Fruiting vegetables do best without too much competition for water and nutrients.
Little Italy
Try this combination for a vegetable garden that makes great pizza
A. 'PATIO BABY' EGGPLANT
This variety is a container variety, with smaller plants that bear 3-inch fruits. Also Consider striped 'Fairy Tale' or white 'Gretal' for containers.
B. Curled Parsley
These coarse leaves are essential for many recipes. Flat-leaf parsley is delicious and a bit stronger in flavor.
C. THYME
Choose trailing English or upright French thyme for this container addition. To harvest, cut the top two-thirds of the stems from the plant, then use your fingers to strip the leaves from the stems.
D. TRICOLOR SAGE
This variety has green leaves that are tinged with purple and white. It is a tasty choice, but regular green garden sage is too spicy.
E. Greek Oregano
No Italian culinary herb blend is complete without this. It is a pollinator favorite. Harvest regularly to keep the pot from getting too crowded.
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