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veg in pots
lesjeanshiloh923479
Posts: 7
Hi, i,m new to this , do i need to buy water retaining gell, blood fish and bone and slow release fertilizer.
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I don't think many people would use any of those for veg in pots, or even in the ground
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
I don't care for water retaining gel, funny texture after a while. If growing veg in pots I would dig in some soil or John Innes No 3 to give a bit more "oomph" than just compost.
It depends on the type of veg too - carrots won't do well with rich soil, for example. Lettuce needs nothing much as long as the growing medium is half decent and doesn't dry out, but that's easy to address by using a saucer or tray below the pot.
Any food given depends on the type of veg. It's why more info is needed. There's an identical thread by the OP, but there's been no response from them regarding more detail, so it's hard to give any useful advice.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
OH has a friend who grew carrots, leeks and onions in pots to enter in shows. He used fertiliser for all, even carrots. What he said was important with carrots was well draining sandy soil. They don't like to meet opposition as they push down.
I don't know what stick beans are @lesjeanshiloh923479 , so can't help with those. Do you mean runner beans? I'm assuming you want info for growing next year though? This isn't the time of year for starting most veg off if you're in the UK.
Peppers are generally grown under cover, unless it's warm enough where you are to have them outside in the warmest months, and that's where location comes in, so if you can give a rough idea of that it'll help. I don't grow them, but I know they need regular feeding once they're flowering and fruiting, and tomato food is ideal for that. It's readily available in all sorts of outlets.
Tomatoes don't need food until they're setting the fruit. Too much extra food just creates lots of growth instead of flowers, and the flowers are what's needed. Most people use tomato food at that stage. If they're treated a bit mean, it'll push them into flowering and then fruiting. I've never used slow release food for veg, only for annual flowering plants like sweet peas etc, because timing is more important. How much water is impossible to advise for any veg because it depends on climate if growing outside, and if inside - it depends on how quickly they're drying out. Consistent watering is more important with tomatoes. If the top inch or two of the soil/compost is dry when you push a finger in, it's usually needing water.
Potatoes will need a decent size of pot, and a reasonably hefty soil but a good compost is often enough. @Dovefromabove will be able to help with those, as I've not grown them for decades. I don't think they need much in the way of extra food if the basic medium is decent. It's more about earthing up as they grow, and keeping the soil moist enough. Pots are fine for them and it saves the worry of crop rotation which is needed when they're in the ground. The size of pot needs to be decent though, both in width and depth.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...