Cultivation Containers for the Urban Garden

If you want to set up a home garden but you do not have a piece of land, one of the best options is to make a flowerpot with different types of containers such as planters, pots, vertical cultivation containers or a garden on cultivation tables.

Containers or planters for urban gardens will perform the same function as the soil, since they contain the substrate in which the roots of the plants are sustained and from which they absorb the water and nutrients they need to grow.

In Plantawa, an agricultural products store, you can find hundreds of containers for the urban garden that we can use to plant our vegetables, herbs and herbs. Today we will see what are the characteristics that these containers for plants must meet and how to choose the best growing container depending on the space and the species that we want to grow in the urban garden.

Pots for the garden: characteristics of the cultivation containers

One of the most important aspects to take into account when choosing growing containers is the size of the plants in the urban garden.

The containers must be large enough so that the roots of our plants can spread well.

In addition, we must consider the free space that we have to install the home garden, opting for small containers, such as pots and planters, if we have a small terrace or balcony, or larger ones, such as drawers or cultivation tables, if we have a larger garden or patio.

Size and depth of culture vessels

How deep should the pots be for the garden? What should be the size of a grow box?

As we have seen, this will depend on the plants that we are going to grow: growing tomatoes in pots is not the same as planting aromatic herbs such as parsley or basil.

While nightshades and cucurbits (such as tomatoes, potatoes, beans and squash) or tubers such as potatoes need deep containers (over 40 cm) due to the large size of their root system, others such as leafy vegetables (lettuce endive, endive…), garlic and many of the aromatic herbs for cooking, with less extensive roots, can be planted in small pots or planters.

If you have already chosen the plants you are going to grow, use the Agrohuerto search engine and find out about the characteristics and space needs of each of them to choose the most suitable container.

What material is best for the pots of an urban garden?

Although there are all kinds of growing containers, on many occasions ceramic pots and planters are recommended over plastic ones, and, in the case of large growing containers, wooden growing tables and drawers over metal ones. The main reason is that these materials retain temperature better than plastic or metal.

The temperature of the substrate must be kept relatively homogeneous throughout the year, otherwise the roots can be damaged if the container overheats in the sun or cools down in frost.

In large and deep containers, as there is a lot of volume of substrate, the amount of heat transmitted by the container is not significant, so you do not have to worry too much about the material. However, for small or medium sizes, if we are in areas with extreme temperatures or large temperature fluctuations, it is advisable to use wooden, ceramic or geotextile containers, more insulating than plastic or metal, which cool down and heat up much more than conventional ones. first.

Types of cultivation containers for the urban garden

There are many types of containers that we can use to grow a home garden. Depending on the species chosen and the space we have, one or another type of container for plants will be more suitable.

Pots and planters for urban gardens

Pots and planters are the cultivation containers par excellence, and they are also used to plant vegetables and thus create a flowerpot.

They are usually used for small-sized plants, such as aromatics and vegetables, although it may also be feasible to use them for growing tomatoes in pots and other vegetables as long as large enough containers are chosen.

cultivation tables

The table culture system has many advantages. The cultivation tables are containers with legs or supports that raise the cultivation drawer to a certain height. Thanks to this, garden work is much more comfortable, which is why they are the ideal cultivation containers for people of a certain age and those with reduced mobility.

In addition, these large growing containers can be easily moved from one place to another and allow more convenient installation of the automatic irrigation system or the creation of a small greenhouse.

Cultivation drawers and flowerpots for urban gardens

There are several types of cultivation boxes for the urban garden. There are simpler ones, like the typical outdoor wooden flowerpots, or more sophisticated ones, like this ladder terrace, in which we can grow vegetables with root systems of different sizes.

Large grow boxes or outdoor pots are deep containers in which larger vegetables can be grown than on growing tables.

Planters and shelves for vertical gardens

Vertical planters are suitable growing containers for patios or balconies with little sun as, being taller containers, they can receive light for a longer time.

Shelves and greenhouses with shelves are perfect for placing pots and planters on balconies and terraces and thus protecting plants that are most sensitive to cold.

In addition to being very original, the containers for vertical gardens are perfect for small balconies or terraces where there is not enough space for a table or a chest of drawers for horizontal cultivation; and we can even manufacture them ourselves with wooden pallets or recycled containers.

These are just some of the most used growing containers in urban gardens. In addition, recycled materials or containers can be used to make personalized and unique planters. If you dare, tell us in the comments and share photos of your growing containers with the Agrohuerto Community !