- Author: Christine Casey
Would you like to grow specialty crops at home but don't have much space? Try a bucket planter!
Easy to make, this is a great solution for harvesting a lot of food from a small space. The slippery sides of the bucket also help to stop squirrels and other four-legged pests from reaching the plant. Here's how to build one:
Step 1: Cut out the bottom of two clean, unused buckets. For safety's sake, use new buckets to ensure that paint or other chemicals don't contaminate the crop. These were cut with a jigsaw, but a steak knife will work if you don't have power tools.
Step 2: Attach the buckets together. In this example, holes were drilled for zip ties. Scissors or a nail could also be used to punch a hole if you don't have a power drill.
Step 3: If needed, secure the planter. We've attached ours to a raised bed with a screw eye and a zip tie. This should hold it up in our windy location.
Step 4: Irrigation. Plants grow best in a tall container if there is a water source running the length of the root zone. We ran a soaker hose up the center of our planter.
Step 5: Fill with soil and wet thoroughly. We used a soilless container media; this is a peat-based product that does not absorb water well if it's dry. Soaking it completely before planting ensures that it remains evenly moist.
Step 6: Plant and enjoy! Mulch is recommended to help conserve water.
Two weeks after planting, our zucchini is blooming. Squash bees have been seen in the flowers, so a harvest can't be far behind!
- Author: Christine Casey
California's squash crop was worth $30 million in 2015, this was second highest in the US. Eat your squash! It is a source of protein, vitamins A, B6, C, and K, thiamin, niacin, phosphorus, folate, magnesium, potassium, and fiber. Although growers rent honey bees for pollination, much squash and pumpkin pollination is done by the squash bee, Peponapis pruinosa. Results of studies on the effect of honey bees on squash bee activity have been varied, showing a mix of positive and negative impacts.
Don't let the notion that squash plants need lots of room deter you from growing this easy specialty crop. Squash can be trained up a trellis or grown on a porch in a bucket planter. It's even a great way to get to know your neighbors via National Sneak Some Zucchini on Your Neighbor's Porch Day!