Container Vegetable Garden when you don't have a yard.

Growing my Vegetable Garden from Seed in a Container Garden

Can you grow vegetables in containers?

Do I need to buy a plant or can I grow them from seed in a tiny Travel Trailer?

Is this going to work?

In this post, I will share the process of how I grew my vegetables from seed and used containers because I don't have a yard right now, so I'll share with you my creative ways of "making it work" so I can grow my own Organic Produce in a Container Garden.

The best sight when you are growing vegetables from seed

But, I thought you owned 2 and a half acres?... yes we do! We are moving into the property at the end of May 2020, we are just waiting for the school year to be over.

Check out our property in this video

On March 5th, 2020 I started the "seed journey", I didn't have it figured out I didn't know what they would look like when they needed to be transplanted when they were supposed to sprout, and I certainly hadn't bought the pots that were going to be their final home.

I just started, because it is overwhelming, and even though I like to know everything I need to know before I start a project, this was not the case, it was not possible, but I've been procrastinating, "analysis paralysis" for years and I never start the garden because of it.

I needed ACTION so I started with the conviction that I would research each variety, sprouting time when to transplant, feed, add and all those details, on March the 5th I just needed to start, so I did.

Baby approves of this Seed Starter... so he decided to photobomb

1- Potting Mix:

I bought the best Seed Starting Mix I could afford, Burpee Eco-Friendly Organic Seed Starting Mix, and has been working wonderfully! It's a lightweight formula, with lots of good additives that help your seedlings develop faster. I recommend it.

I used Peat Pots by Jolly Grow containers to start the seeds

2- The container:

Then I added the potting mix to the Peat Pots that I purchased from Amazon, they have been patiently waiting since November 2019 when I bought them. I also put them on top of a baking sheet so I could water without worrying about the draining ( they are cardboard-like kind of material), as I mention we are temporarily living in a 32FT Travel Trailer so these seed trays are moving from one window to the next so I can catch the most amount of sun... thankfully we are parked facing North so we get all the East sun from the morning and soft afternoon sun of the west in the afternoon.
Again, I move them between 3-4 windows several times a day.

Here is what the packaging looks like

3- Planting the Seeds

Then it was time to get the seeds I bought again, back in November 2019. I decided to start with the basics, green bell pepper ( Keystone Resistant Giant), Red Chili Pepper ( Big Jim Chili), Broccoli ( Calabrese), Beefsteak Tomatoes, Rutgers Tomatoes. I planned to do more but this is just for starters.

This is only part of the pack I bought

This is a set of 34 Pack Vegetable & Herb Seeds 34 Varieties Create a Deluxe Garden All Seeds are Heirloom, 100% Non-GMO! by Black Duck Brand 34 Different Varieties

I only have tried the varieties I mentioned but I plan to use them all, I will share progress with those in another post.

It is also very important to wet the soil before you add the seeds, not soaking wet, just damp so it makes it easier on the seed.

I put between 1 and 2 seeds per cell.. they were tiny and stuck to my fingers

Tip

People recommend putting 2 or 3 seeds per cell, I tried to do 1 per cell to try, but the seeds were sticking to my hands so I couldn't control it as I wanted it, so I ended up with 1 to 2 seeds per cell.

If both sprout ( and they did) you just have to keep the bigger and stronger one.

Tip

Make sure you don't "bury" the seed, and also don't compact the soil, which will make it harder to sprout and also it will take longer, just follow the instructions of depth in the back of the seeds packet.

Then I added about 2/3 of a cup of water between the 3 trays.

4- Feed them with water after planting:

Then I added more water, just so you have an idea I added 2/3 of a cup and it was more than enough to smooth the soil surface and cover the seed while absorbing the water.

Keep in mind Utah is dry, so the soil was dry, not wet smelling or damp, adjust the amount of water you use depending on the soil and how dry it is.

Then I added the "labels" that came with the Peat Pots

5- Label them or you will forget!

Then I labeled, I have no idea how a tomato, bell pepper or broccoli plant looks like, so I made sure to keep the packets by the trays so I could add the labels to the right ones. I know " what a newbie!"

At first, the pots were not wet on that day, it kept dry and the soil wet, but that changed the next day and now are a little bit more flimsy and doesn't keep the shape very well, so I'm thankful for the cookie sheet underneath, that saved me from dropping them in more than one time!

The tomatoes are a bit more protected by a "cake pan"

So I ended up with 2 oven baking sheets, one with the tomatoes ( the cake pan with tall sides) and the cookie sheet with the peppers and broccoli.

In total it took me about 1/2 an hour from start to finish ( plus 20 min of pictures and filming).

I put it off for so long and it was so easy and gratifying in the end.

Then to the sun, they went

6- The Best Spot to grow these seedlings.

Well, now it was time to find a spot, for the morning that was the best spot, this is a Travel Trailer bottom bunk bed I let "Baby" sleep in, he loves to sit there and look out the window so he can bark at puppies that are going to the park while he is inside. He is a funny pup, and he does go to the park, but he just likes to be the center of attention.

These are just some simple steps you can take to get started below are the updates on how they are growing until Harvest time.

ONCE YOUR SEEDLINGS DEVELOP THEIR TRUE LEAVES, THEY ARE READY TO GO TO A BIGGER CONTAINER.

You can choose to keep them in a slightly bigger container to help them grow a bit stronger, but if not this is the time to set them up in their final container.

Here are a few containers and the step by step on how to plant them:

🌱 TOP 12 VEGETABLES FOR CONTAINERS