Save space in the garden with upside-down planters for all your trailing vegetables. The plants hang out the bottom of the planter, saving space on trellises and allowing you to grow vining plants right on the balcony or from the porch railing. Water and fertilizer go in the top of the planter close, to the feeder roots, where it's needed most. You can make upside-down planters from buckets or buy upside-down planters from garden centers.
About Growing Upside-Down
Growing vegetables in upside-down containers saves space in small gardens and means you can grow vegetables close to the kitchen even if you don't have any garden space. In areas with poor soil or where pesticides have been used, you can grow organic vegetables up out of the problem soil area. Growing upside-down is ideal for leggy or trailing plants, like beans, tomatoes, peppers and strawberries, that would otherwise take up a lot of space or require trellising.
A 5 gallon bucket works well as an upside-down garden container. Clean out the bucket and then cut a hole in the bottom. Select a bucket that has a handle and a lid. Drill out a 1- to 2-inch hole in the center of the bottom of the bucket. The bucket hangs from a hook and the plant grows out the hole, literally upside-down. For a ready-made option, buy one at a garden or home improvement center.
Hang the 5 gallon bucket or the planter at a height that's easy to reach. Holding a seedling gently by the root ball, press its roots first into the hole in the bottom of the upside-down planter. Hold the seedling so the base of the stalk and foliage are hanging out of the hole. Add soil in the top of the planter, a few handfuls at a time, pressing it around the seedling's root ball to hold it in place. Then, fill up the rest of the planter to 2 to 4 inches from the top of the bucket. Use quality potting soil mixed with seasoned compost.
Care and Maintenance
Add water and fertilizer into the top of the bucket or planter. Water when the soil starts to feel dry to the touch, in hot weather, you might have to water once a day or more. Use an all-purpose fertilizer according to the directions on the package label. Growing upside-down has the advantage that water and fertilizer go in the top, close to the roots. Most vegetables do best in full sun, so pick an area that gets six hours of sun or more per day. Harvest as the vegetables ripen throughout the growing season.
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