Container Garden Tour for 2021

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When Philip and I began talking about the 2021 garden, I advocated growing a container garden. If you recall, we have had very large gardens the last two years, so a container garden seemed like a step backward.  However, the alternative was that we would not have a garden for 2021. I’m so glad we did! I love the fresh veggies that we are getting if it’s only a little, plus I just enjoy it.  I do wish I was more knowledgeable about the gardening challenges, bugs being my biggest nemesis, but I try to learn as we go. Because of our wedding, we planted the garden much later than normal. In the past, we have combat insects by starting earlier, before the bugs get so bad.

Did you miss the 2021 Garden Intro, see where it all began here

Philip and I are moved! We are living in the RV, downsizing to allow us to meet our financial goals of moving to Kentucky debt-free.  While we are physically in the RV, we still have quite a bit to do in the house still, but we are making progress.  At this point, all the animals and most of the plants are moved to the new property. I wanted to take a moment to give you a tour of the 2021 Container Garden to see how it’s progressing and our new setup. 

Tomatoes, Large and Small

We have 9 containers of large tomatoes.  Tomatoes are doing really well in the container garden.  The plants do tend to dry out in the pots, but all of our tomatoes have a lot of fruit.  I noticed a tiny tinge of red on one tomato, so I would say that the harvest is coming soon. We love homemade salsa, so I cant wait!  There are four pots of cherry tomatoes as well.  We have harvested a few handfuls of these tomatoes.  I tend to eat them right out of the garden.  But I harvest a few for salads too.  

Two varieties of Grapes

We have two varieties of grapes.  This is their second year.  So far, no grapes harvested, but this is one of those plants that the harvest takes time.  I read they can take up to 3 years to bear fruit.  We do have two grape plants still at the Florida house that need to be dug up. 

Can you grow Zucchini in a Container Garden

I love zucchini! Its one of those plants that you must be careful not to plant too much, because it doesn’t have a lot of options for preserving, other than relish and its easy to get a plentiful harvest!  I wasn’t sure how the zucchini would do in a container garden. Surprisingly, they have done very well. So far we have harvested two zucchini from our three zucchini plants.   

In the video, I reference the yellow ends of the zucchini.  I researched it and this is caused by incomplete pollination.  Too few grains of pollen from the male flower pollinated to the female flower.   This causes yellowing, stunted growth, and misshaped fruit. As the Queen Bee of this homestead, I guess I need to talk with those ladies in the apiary department.    I told Philip, that I wondered if the apiary location would be like living near a cell phone tower, the signal is poor because it shoots over the house.  The bees just shoot on by our garden, rather than stop in and pollinate the flowers. 

Peppers

We have two green pepper plants.  They started out with a great yield and were plentiful!  We have harvested 6 medium-sized peppers and have a few on the plants now.  The flower production is not as plentiful as it was in the beginning, but still producing.  I made stuffed peppers with the ones we harvested and any of the pieces I cut off, I saved to use in salads.  The peppers also have some insect damage. 

Tiny Green Beans

We grow bush beans because we just like them better.  We have  13 containers of green beans. Neither of us are a fan of the “sting” in the green beans, so we try to get a variety that is stringless.  In general, bush beans do not have that as badly.  I was not sure we could grow green beans in a container garden, but I read bush beans specifically were good for pots.  They have seemed small and had some yellowing issues.  I believe this is a nutrient issue.  Philip did add some natural rabbit mature to the pots so hopefully, we will see some improvement.  However, we are finally getting blossoms and tiny green beans!  I can hardly wait! 

Cucumbers for Salads

We have two cucumbers in pots.  We have gotten a couple of cucumbers so far.  I like an English cucumber with fewer seeds, the ones we have are small, which is perfect for us. We’ve harvested 3 cucumbers so far this year. Right now, we have one with a ton of blossoms and one with just a few.  We are having some disfigured fruit, which I determined is poor pollination again rather than a water issue. I have to say, those bees are slacking! 

Fruit Trees in the Container Garden

We have a variety of fruit and fruit trees. Strawberries, blackberries, and raspberries in addition to the grapes. We still need to dig up the mature berry plants at the Florida house to bring with us. You can imagine digging up berry bushes, it’s quite the “sticky” situation, and not in a good way, ouch!

We have three peach trees, a pear tree, two apple trees, and a persimmon tree. While all the trees will be planted in Kentucky, the persimmon tree will be planted on Kowalski Mountain in memory of our friend and neighbor Robert Duvall, who passed away last year. Robert was such a blessing to us, we were certainly blessed to have known him and call him a friend. His family still lives beside us at Kowalski Mountain, they are a dear sweet family who we are thankful to have as neighbors. You can read our tribute to Robert Duvall here.

Enjoy the video tour of the 2021 Container Garden

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