Bucket gardening is rapidly growing your favorite plants in big buckets. This method is a special subset of container gardening, it most often uses 5 gallon buckets, sometimes with holes in the bottom. Why? For many reasons: shallow enough to accommodate a variety of root systems, many varieties of plants, and plenty of water. You can even grow edible plants in some containers.
Why not start out by growing your favorite vegetable or flower seeds in small containers? This is how I started my first collection of “bedding plants.” The bedding plants would be just that – plants directly planted into the bucket without being “canned” to protect the roots. Most seeds are fine with very little water for the first couple of weeks. The idea here is to let the seedlings grow healthily and “out of your way,” so to speak, until you have room for them in your larger container gardening bed.
Of course, many gardeners want to grow their favorite plant varieties in small spaces. It’s really up to the gardener what he or she wants to grow in a small space. I’ll share a few ideas about how to get started with this type of gardening, as well as bucket gardening 101.
There are many ways to use containers for growing things, including container gardening 101. If you’re growing exotic plants or rare flowers that you want to keep on the hanger, this might be an option for you. It’s very easy to go from an area of the yard that’s mostly or completely shaded to grow a bright, healthy plant that will be a delight to your neighbors’ gardens and homes. When it comes to doing a good job with this method, however, you need to be careful to make sure you have enough light coming through to the plants you want to grow, and to make sure the soil you’re using contains adequate nutrients for your plants to really thrive.
You can do a few different things with your container per bucket. You can use it as a small pot, to grow two plants side by side or one large plant and two smaller ones. You can even use it to grow one large plant per bucket, then put two smaller plants in the bottom and one in the top. Or you can use a single container per bucket, and have three small plants (your choice) in the middle and two larger plants on the outside. It really depends on your situation and your taste.
But first, let’s talk about the bucket gardening basics. A bucket is made out of sturdy material, such as metal, vinyl, or plastic. It’s usually wide, rectangular, with sides that are wide and high, so you can hold soil and other things in it, including pots and other containers. And often, there’s a hole in the lid of the bucket – this is to allow moisture to escape, as it does in a pot, while keeping water in the potting mix and drainage area. Sometimes there is a handle on the top of the bucket, but not always. This lets you lift the lid a bit for a better look at what you’re planting.
Most people think of buckets as being used for planting only, but they can actually also be used for other activities, too. For example, many of them have spigots, that come out to give you water, plants, or nutrients when the container soil is ready. They have lids that allow you to pour water into the potting mix or pour it out of the top, depending on the situation. They have access to hoses that take the water to the plant, or to another location if the soil is too wet or too dry. They have drainage holes to let excess water drain away, and some have lighting systems that let you see what you’re planting at night, so you don’t have to guess.
If you’ve been in the trenches, you know that it takes a lot of work watering, weeding, and harvesting. Soil replenishment is one of the primary jobs of the gardeners. There are some specialized types of buckets for this purpose. You can get ones that have pumps in them so they move water quickly from one area to another, like froth-mills. There are also specialized versions of buckets that have perforations, like large animal buckets, that allow you to take out a section of soil quickly, and re-load it with fresh potting soil.