Organic Container Gardening Guide

Prepare

1. Select a few large containers, and place them where you want them to stay - as once full they will be hard to move. Ensure the containers have drainage holes in the bottom.

2. Select a range of veges that you enjoy eating. Some options include rocket, dill, chives, lettuce, spinach, basil. To help keep pests at bay, and attract good bugs to the garden, it is also a good idea to plant some companion plants – dill is a lovely herb, and the flower heads are said to be a good source of nectar for good bugs like hoverflies and French marigolds are also known to be a good companion plant.

Plant

3. Fill your containers with Tui Organic Vegetable Mix. Tui Organic Vegetable Mix is BioGro certified, providing your vegetables with a 100% organic growing medium. Crafted from natural ingredients including bark fines, the healthy additions of natural fertiliser, a natural disease suppressant, calcium and potassium, this mix is designed to ensure you get the most from your vegetable patch.

4. Tap the containers gently on the ground to settle the mix.

5. Before planting, soak each of your seedlings in a bucket of Tui Organic Seaweed Plant Tonic and allow to drain. This will help prevent transplant shock.

6. Dig holes approximately twice the size of the root ball of your plants.

7. Gently loosen the root ball of each plant and position in the holes. Ensure the plant is sitting at the same level in the soil as it was in its seedling container.

8. Press soil gently around the base of the plants.

9. Water your plants well.

Nourish

10. Feed your plants and they will feed you. Plants use nutrients from the soil as they grow, so replenishing nutrients used ensures they will grow to their full potential. Top your pots up with Tui Organic Compost in between plantings to replenish nutrients. Sheep pellets, blood & bone, and seaweed-based fertilisers are all natural options you can use.

11. It is best to water deeply a few times a week rather than a little each day, as this will encourage deep roots. Water in the morning or evening rather than the heat of the day to avoid water evaporation.

12. Well watered, well nourished plants will have a better chance of keeping insect pests and diseases at bay.

Protect

13. The weather, weeds, pest insects and diseases can all impact on the success of your plants. Keep your garden weed free. Be vigilant and stop unwanted insects and diseases from ruining your plants - companion planting is a great natural way to deter pests.

Check out the full Tui BioGro certified range here >