Container Gardening

Container Gardening-15 best vegetables that grow well in a container or pot

Posted by Farhan Ahsan on December 11, 2013

If you adore vegetables and want to have some in your own garden, then go ahead and enjoy planting the wonderful vegetables. However, if you lack limited space than even you are not supposed to worry about it. You can definitely fulfill your wish by growing the desired vegetables in pots or containers. However, growing vegetables in pots depends upon the type you are growing.

Hybridizer breeds in vegetables are the best vegetables to grow in pots, as they need lesser space. Here is the list of 15 ideal container vegetables for your home garden. There is a great possibility that you cannot find all these varieties so you can even switch the varieties like midget, tiny, baby and dwarf.

1: Beets –

This kind of variety grows well in small spaces – however, if you want best results try to grow “Red Ace” type. You need to have a pot, which has at least 12 inches depth so that beets can grow freely. Within such a space, you can grow up to six different plants. If you want to have more, opt the baby beets.

2: Beans –

There are two best types of bush varieties including “derby” and “provider” – for growing these you need a pot which has about 12 inches depth. It is important to check root depth of vegetables for better growth. If you want to grow long poles within a box, you would have to attach trellis along with the pot.

3: Carrots:

Are you interested in growing carrots in containers? If yes, then you must start growing the varieties like:

• Thumbelina
• Short n Sweet
• Little Fingers

If you actively water the pot, you are more likely to get a healthier plant. In case you wish to have longer plants, make sure you choose deeper pots.

4: Cole Crops:

Cole crops include cauliflower, broccoli and cabbage; these are the easiest vegetables to grow in containers. However, you should not plant lot of types in a single pot otherwise, they will not be able to grow.

5: Cucumber:

If you are interested in growing cucumber in containers, then always go for “Salad Bush” or “Bush Pickle” varieties. You must consider the plants coming out of the edges of the pot.

6: Eggplant: 

Any pot which has the capacity to hold up to 5 inches depth can be used for growing eggplant. However, without stake you would not be able to hold the plant in the pot, so be careful.

7: Lettuce and other greens:

If you are looking for best container vegetables, then your choice would be lush greens and lettuce. In this case, the size of the pot does not come into a count. Take some fertile soil, add the required seeds and keep the soil moist so that you can get lovely salads from the home garden.

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8: Melons:

Have you heard about dwarf melon “Bush Sugar Baby” melons? These are tiny watermelon types, which are perfect to grow in small pots. In a deep pot, it would continue to grow and leave the edges with spirals. These would provide the fruit with necessary support, so pay special attention to it.

9: Onions:

Particularly green onions are known to grow well in containers. You require a bag of set and a pot, which is about 4 to 5 inches deep. Within this size, you can freely grow an onion until it is a bulb size.

10: Peas:

You can plant up to six plants within a 12-inch deep pot of the following baby pea variety:

• Green Arrow
• Maestro
• English peas
• Sugar Bon’ snap pea

11: Peppers:

It is an ideal rule to have a big pot so that peppers grow better. You have the liberty to grow any kind of pepper within the container.

12: Potatoes: 

It is always fun to grow potatoes, and specially fun growing potatoes in a container.  You need a pot, which has up to 12 inches, and plant 3 to 4 potato es in the pot. Keep on giving it enough water so that plant starts to produce; make sure all the stems are fully covered with soil. Within a few months, you can get early potatoes and later you can take out the larger ones.

13: Radishes: 

Radishes can be grown quickly and easily even if you have the smallest container. All you have to scatter are some seeds in the pot (top level) and keep the soil moist diligently.

14: Squash: 

Use a 5 to 7 inch deep pot so that you can grow lovely winter squash varieties – these may include:

• Cornell Bush Delicata
• Papaya Pear
• Table King’

15: Tomatoes: 

It is your right to have juicy and fresh tomatoes; you can certainly grow them in pots. However, you must try first a dwarf variety like ‘Bush Big Boy’ in a 5-inch deep container. The popular dwarf varieties are;

• Patio
• Tiny Tim
• Window Box Roma

All these varieties fit perfectly in smaller size containers and pots.

Therefore, by now you must be intrigued enough to start planting vegetables in the containers. Growing blueberries in pots is also a fun activity. Once done with veggies you can start your own fruit garden as well.

15 Weirdest Ways to Start a Fire

By Alan in Fire Making, Fire Starters, Videos · 0 Comments

Every prepper knows you’re supposed to put fire starting materials in your bug out bag and with the rest of your survival supplies. Fire is life, and having a way to start one during a disaster is crucial.
However, you could find yourself in a situation where you don’t have your bug out bag and can’t get to your supplies. If that happens, you’ll have to use your wits and whatever materials you can find. Fortunately, there are many ways to start a fire without matches, flint, or a lighter.
In this post I’m going to share some of the weirdest and most unusual ways to start a fire. These methods aren’t always immediately effective and may take some practice. But once you learn them, you’ll be a regular MacGyver when it comes to fire making. Here are some unusual things you can use to start a fire.

1. Gum Wrapper and Battery

A foil gum wrapper and a battery can make a small flame that you can use to get a fire going. You can use any size cylindrical battery, but most people use AA batteries. Just cut the foil wrapper so that the middle is about
1/4 as thick as the ends. Touch the foil side to the bottom of the battery, then touch the other end to the top of the battery, and the narrow part in the middle will catch fire. Watch the video to see it done.

2. Steel Wool and Battery

 

This is similar to the gum wrapper method. Just stretch the steel wool so it reaches the positive and negative terminals, and it will create enough energy to set the wool on fire. The easiest way is to use a 9V battery (like in the video below) because you can easily touch both terminals to the steel wool at the same time. But if all you have is a cylindrical battery such as a AA battery, you can use that as well.

3. Jumper Cables and a Car Battery

 

First, attach a set of jumper cables to your car battery. Then take the opposite ends and tap them together to create sparks. If you have plenty of dry tinder, you can use those sparks to get a fire started. It’s even easier if you have some steel wool. This method is somewhat dangerous since you risk blowing up your car battery, but it’s worth a try to avoid freezing.

4. Pencil and a Car Battery

 

If you don’t want to make sparks with your jumper cables, try this instead. Carve down two ends of a pencil until the lead is exposed, then attach your jumper cables to both ends of the pencil, making sure the jumper cables are touching the lead. Place the pencil on your kindling, then attach the other ends of the jumper cables to your car battery. Soon, the pencil will heat up and set your kindling on fire.

5. D Batteries and a Cell Phone Cord

 

First, take your charger cord and strip the ends so the wire is exposed. Hold two D batteries together, press one end of the cord to the bottom of one battery, then touch the wires on the other end of the cord to the top of the other battery. Have some tinder touching the top of the other battery also. The heat will cause the tinder to catch fire. This is a little tricky, but it works.

6. A Condom Filled With Water

 

Seriously. Just fill a condom with water until it’s the size of a small water balloon, then hold it at an angle that focuses the sunlight into a narrow beam. Focus the beam of sunlight onto some dried grass for a few minutes. This will cause the grass to heat and eventually start burning.

7. Urine and a Plastic Bag

 

It may sound far-fetched, but it works if you have plenty of sunlight. First, fill a plastic bag with urine. Alternatively, you can shape some plastic wrap into a bowl, put some urine in it, and wrap it up (as seen in the video below). A water bottle probably won’t work because you won’t be able to fill it enough to get the refraction you need. Once your urine-filled magnifying glass is ready, use it to focus a beam of sunlight on your tinder. Before long, it will catch fire.

8. Plastic Wrap and Water

 

Another way to use sunlight is to create an aqua lens. Stretch some plastic wrap across a frame of some sort and secure it in place with tape. Then pour water onto the plastic wrap until you have a bowl of water. If the sun is overhead, the aqua lens will form a beam of sunlight under which you can put your tinder. Before long, the tinder will catch fire.

9. A Light Bulb and Water

 

This one is fairly simple. Break off the bottom of a clear light bulb and remove everything inside it. Fill the light bulb with water and use it as an aqua lens to focus sunlight on a bundle of tinder. After a while, the tinder will start burning.

10. An Old TV Screen

 

If you have or can find an old big screen TV, take it apart and remove the giant Fresnel lens. Now simple angle the lens so a beam of sunlight is focused on your tinder. Before long, the tinder will catch fire. Warning: This method makes a very hot beam of sunlight. So hot, in fact, that it can boil a bottle of water. So don’t stick your hand in the sunbeam.

11. A Chunk of Ice

 

Yes, ice can also start a fire. It works the same way as the condom filled with water. Just angle the ice at your dried grass and let sun work its magic. You’ll want to wear gloves so your hands don’t get too cold. This method can take a bit, and you’ll need direct sunlight to do it, but it definitely works.

12. Chocolate and a Soda Can

 

Simply rub some chocolate on the bottom of an aluminum can, then polish it with a paper towel or cloth until it’s nice and shiny. After that, you can use it as a reflective tool to aim a beam of sunlight at your tinder. Before long, the tinder will catch fire. Then add wood to build a fire. If you don’t have any chocolate, use some toothpaste instead.

13. A Flashlight

 

Remove the top lens and pull out the reflective cone that the light bulb sits in. Place a bit of dried grass or dry moss where the bulb would normally sit, and place the cone in direct sunlight. The reflection of the sunlight will heat the tinder and cause it to start burning.

14. An Empty Lighter

 

An empty lighter may seem useless, but you can still use it to start a fire. Slowly grind the wheel of the lighter against a sheet of paper. After a minute or two, you’ll accumulate a small pile of flint dust. Now put some tinder on the dust, then use the lighter to throw a spark at it. The dust will catch the spark and set your tinder on fire.

15. Brake Fluid and Chlorine

 

Start with a small pile of powdered chlorine, pour some brake fluid on it, then quickly back away. After smoking for a few moments, the pile will burst into flames. Now throw some tinder and wood on the pile before the flames go out. Since there’s the possibility of an explosive effect, I recommend wearing safety goggles or averting your eyes. I would also do this on the ground instead of in a container since there’s no telling how the material in the container will react.
These methods may be strange, but they all work. You can always resort to the old-fashioned method of rubbing two sticks together or banging two rocks together. But if you’re in an urban area, you should be able to find the materials to try one of these methods, which are a bit easier than traditional methods. Have fun and be safe!

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