As I mentioned last week, another post from the garden is here. I don't know how long this method has been going on, I just found out about it a couple of years ago, but then again I only started paying attention a couple of years ago as my interest started. Container gardening is exactly what it sounds like, gardening in containers. Growing plants in pots, it's great for people with small yards, poor soil, limited space, or people with apartment balconies. It allows you to grow plants in places you usually couldn't.
It's a great thing; it allows plants to be moved based on the amount of sunlight needed. It also allows for mobility in the event that there is an unusually cold spring with late frosts like this past year. There is no tilling of a large area needed, nor is there usually the need for a ton of weeding. Sound good so far? Now for the rest of the story.
Container gardening is good, but at the same time it can be a real pain. Because the root system isn't in the ground and is limited in how much it can grow your plants growth is effected, which in turn affects the size and amount of the fruit or vegetables produced. In addition to this, since it's a small container it dries out quickly needing constant watering. Because of the small size you're limited in the types of plants you can grow, some things need more than just a gallon pot.
This year I didn't have the space to grow things like last year, so I attempted some container gardening. Last year I grew watermelons because I wanted to grow something but didn't want to do a ton of work. From one of the melons I kept seeds to plant the following year, only this year there was nowhere to plant them. As spring got closer I started to think, the only thing that needs to be in the ground is the root system. The vines and the melons all grow on the surface, so that shouldn't matter. I found a pot, about two gallons, filled it with soil, and planted the seeds.
The first round sprouted, but didn't make it, most likely a result of the cold wet spring we had. I had a couple left so I decided to try again not expecting it to work, but having nothing to lose tried again. This time I got seven vines that grew and began to spill over the edges of the pot onto the ground. I moved it to a spot in the yard and surrounded it with a small piece of fencing to keep the deer off of it. I've been watering it daily, and have added plant food as needed to increase the fertility of the soil.
I have five melons growing on the vines, but they aren't really what I'd call melons. One is about the size of a softball, one is about the size of a baseball, and the other three are like golf balls on weak steroids. They have full sun pretty much all day. They are well watered with proper drainage so the roots get enough but don't rot. And I've added nutrients into the soil so that the plants have energy to grow, but in spite of all of this, some things just weren't made to grow in a container.
(Side note: If you want to grow watermelons and have a confined space there is a type called Bush Sugar Baby which will grow in a pot. I helped my niece plant some this spring and her's are doing very well, 15 healthy vines with about a dozen and a half melons.)
So where am I going with this? I'm honestly trying to remember. This might be one of those things that seemed like a really good idea until you start to actually work with it. It all started with the fact that my watermelons, which are Crimson Sweet and not Bush Sugar Baby, are not seeming to do too well in the container they are planted in.
Thinking back to Psalm 1, the righteous man is compared to a tree that is firmly planted by streams of water which bears its fruit in its season and its leaf does not whither. A tree planted in the ground has room to grow. Plants need three essential nutrients to grow, Nitrogen which helps the part of the plant you see, Phosphorus which helps the roots, and Potassium which focuses on all around plant health. Phosphorus is something that is quick to drain from the soil, so in order to get it; the roots have to keep moving outward and deeper into the soil. The bigger the root system the more secure the plant is in the ground. In a container the roots can only go the edges of the pot. They aren't firmly rooted in anything, and they get to a point where they stop expanding because they no longer need to.
A pot bound plant is dependent upon someone watering it. Again, pots dry out quickly and without constant watering the plant will wither and die. But a tree planted in the ground by a constantly flowing fresh water source is connected to a source of life. It isn't dependent upon anyone, just its life source that is easily accessible. It will not wither. Because of this the tree can produce an abundance of fruit when the season is right. When the plant is free to grow, and empowered to grow, the possibilities are endless. I've asked before, how many pieces of fruit are in a seed?
The Christian life cannot be a container garden existence. We cannot limit our growth and fruitfulness by staying in a comfort container. If we don't allow ourselves to grow, if we don't challenge ourselves to grow, then we starve ourselves. If we don't have a real personal faith, a faith that is rooted in a personal relationship with God, we will wither and die. The Christian must be like a tree planted by a stream of water, otherwise it’s just a plant with a momentary existence.
"I have been young and now I am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his descendants begging bread."
To God alone be the Glory!
Peace be with you
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