SELF-WATERING VEGETABLE PLANTERS

Don’t Just Eat Your Veggies… GROW Them!

Vegetables are no longer just a side dish.  Plants have been taking over my dinner plate in the last couple of years. And that’s one of the reasons why I’ve been itching to grow them successfully.   (if you don’t want to read on, just  scroll to the bottom of this post to see the video demo) 

Trouble is- growing vegetables has always been an elusive goal. With soil that’s hard as rock and almost no sunshine in my backyard, it’s not surprising that I have failed until now.  I chalked it up to living in the city where I presumed it was difficult to grow produce effectively.  That was the lame excuse I made for myself to rationalize my hopeless green thumbs.  But, no more!

WOW! Did my perspective change last summer after I visited a fully functioning city farm in the heart of downtown Toronto.  On top of Ryerson University on the Andrew and Valerie Pringle Environmental Green Roof is an ecological market garden that blew me away.

The Ryerson Urban Farm is a quarter acre which produces 10,000 pounds of produce a year

That’s a heck of a lot of veggies!!!  It’s absolutely amazing and proof that vegetables CAN grow anywhere given the right conditions.  I was inspired and even more determined than ever to succeed at growing plants this year. 

Huge shout out to Urban Farm Manager Arlene Throness and Urban Farm Operations Coordinator Jayne Miles.  They work their butts off and put together a fabulous Urban Farm Training Program that I attended this spring.   I learned a ton about the ecological approach to gardening, crop planning, soil fertility, greenhouse potting, seeding, field operations, harvesting and distribution.  I loved every minute of it. 

In addition to growing crops on raised beds, the farm also grows certain vegetables, like peppers in self-watering planters (seen above).  That’s when a light bulb went off in my head. 

Why not grow vegetables in the driveway?

Why you ask?  Since sunlight is key, it made sense to move my vegetable garden to the driveway where the sun shines all day long. Self-watering planters full of fertile organic soil would be perfect for the plants to thrive and grow. 

My husband Andrew  and I have been busy busy busy!  We just finished assembling the pots and planted everything.  And we shot a video to demonstrate how to make the planters in case you are curious.  I’m so excited to see everything grow.

Thanks to the Ryerson Urban Farm program for teaching me this DIY project and letting me share it with you.  Wish me luck! I hope the Walnut Kitchen driveway garden has a great crop yield this year!

Here’s a list of what you will need to build the planters:  

• Two 5-gallon pails
• One 3” round acquatic basket
• One 18” long PVC pipe, 1” diameter
• Hacksaw
• Power drill with 3″, 1″  & .25 bits
• Organic potting mix
• Coconut coir
• Vegetable plant of your choice

Watch this video demo for the step by step building instructions for these  Self-watering planters.

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