Our containers are swimming pools ;-)

We just bought our house last September and the majority of the back yard slopes steeply downhill. The most level area is behind the garage and is a gravel and weedy mess. So for now, we garden in swimming pools. 3 are 5 feet across by 10 inches deep, and 4 are 4 feet across by 7 inches deep. Large pool #1 held peas, and will have a second crop planted soon. Large pool #2 has Kohlrabi "Early White Vienna". Large pool #3 has zukes "8 ball", a bush cuke, banana peppers, and Cilantro. Small pool #1 has beets and carrots. Small pool #2 has herbs, Dill, Genovese Basil, Lemon Basil, Cinnamon Basil, Sweet Dani Basil, Catnip and Rosemary. Small pool #3 has radish, onions and Sage. Small pool #4 has Mesculn Lettuces planted at 2 week intervals and a cantalope.

Here are a few pictures:

mg

(edited for speeling, lol)

This message was edited Jul 27, 2005 11:43 AM

This message was edited Jul 27, 2005 11:45 AM

this is large pool #3

Small pool #2

(the rosemary didn't do well, so we added some more sage but forgot to relable it)

This message was edited Jul 27, 2005 11:47 AM

Mint on the deck

I knew I'd been hanging on to my old formed pond liners for something! What a good idea. I can just stack stone around them to hide/support the sides/shallow end. Thanks for the photos. Did you leave the bottoms in these or cut em out? Poke holes?

And my husband thinks I need a 12 step gardening program!

Great kiddie pools! You have inspired me!

Gayle, thanks for the link! This is FACINATING!!! And what great way to be able to garden even when you can't! I'm impressed!

I've heard of doing various types of gardening, everything from using them for winter sowing to making a bog in them...but whodda thunk...GROWING herbs and veggies in them. WoW! (Oooops, you know what means!) LOL

~julie~

mg,

You ingenious little gardener you,,,,,Great idea.

Kelly

TY TY TY *bowing*

How did I miss Keyi's question?? I'm sooo sorry!

How I did them:

1. I drilled holes all over the bottoms. Tried to do them one at a time for the first one, quickly found out that was a huge hassle, so I stacked them back together by sizes and drilled thru them all at the same time. Used the biggest drill bit I could find in DH's toolbox.

2. Then I flipped them all back over and drug them around the area until I had them fairly level and where I wanted them. Actually thought about trying to move them after they were full BEFORE they were full for a change, lol!

3. I cut up old window screens and covered up the holes in the bottom of the pools. Next came a layer of gravel, mostly the 'decorative" rock the previous owners had spread all over the front yard. Then I filled the pools up with the load of dirt I had delivered. Screened and pulverised, really nice stuff! Mixed in some compost and planted or sewed seeds. Then I mulched some of them.

4. I did have to water more than I expected, but this was an awful year for us drought wise. I didn't have a huge weed problem except for those dang maple tree helicopters!

5. Now that winter has reared it's ugly head I have gone out and cleaned up the dead stuff and put down another layer of mulch. I doubt any of the herbs will come back, but I could find a surprise next spring, lol!

Thanks for looking and I hope this idea could work for you too!

How very wise you are! I have used kiddy pools to provide cool water for my dog, to mass-water my container plants, and to give my grandchildren something to play in, but never thought about actually growing plants in them - THANK YOU!

Kay, you are welcome, but honestly it was sheer dumb luck that I even thought of it in the first place. It could have been a spectacular failure, lol.

I am still impressed every time I see this thread and all those kiddie pools. And something that wasn't mentioned is that they are just the right size... not too big and not too small to be able to reach all the weeds with little or no strain.

Yeah EQ, they were a breeze to weed.

The only thing I might do differently if I had to, would be using all bigger pools if I could. The smaller ones were great for the herbs, but they dried out faster. But again, we had a drought this year that was pretty bad.

mg