Or do we?

This is also America in a new millennium. Increasing amounts of would-be-gardeners are looking around smaller yards, balconies and patios, and wanting to make the most of what they have. And the seed companies are responding.

Over the last decade, plant breeders and seed companies have risen to the challenge of tight spaces and busy schedules and gifted the small-space gardener with many wonderful choices.

This doesn’t mean that the balcony gardener will have to cut up eighteen cherry tomatoes in order to make a respectable BLT, or that the patio gardener will have to supplement the microscopic chile relleno on her plate with three cups of Spanish rice. Most of these varieties have been specifically selected in terms of growth habit and production – giving you more for less, so to speak. Here are some of my favorites:

Great edibles for container gardening

‘Garden Babies’ lettuce (Renee’s Seeds) – Hands down my absolute favorite lettuce. I’d grow this beautiful butter lettuce whether I had a tenth of an acre or ten. Tight heads, grows quickly, makes a container look like a million bucks, and the superb texture and taste that is indicative of high-end salads that cost you a lot more than a packet of seeds.

‘Super Bush’ tomato (Renee’s Seeds) – Another big winner from Renee’s. This variety gives you plenty of those Campari-sized tomatoes, but takes all the hassle out of tomato growing. Stems are thick and do not need staking – making them a terrific option for resident gardeners who hate wrestling with tomato cages.

‘Dolce Fresca’ compact basil (Park Seed, Territorial Seed) – A 2015 All-America Selection, this basil doesn’t turn into a gawky teenager as soon as you turn your back. The texture is tender, the taste is right on the money, and keeping a couple pots going means that you can alternately harvest one and prominently display the other.

‘Picklebush’ cucumber (Burpee) – I have been a fan of this older variety for many years as the vines stay compact and manageable. The fruit is a perfect pickle size but can be picked earlier by foodies who like to serve their own cornichons at parties where cornichon is considered a food group.

‘Numex Easter’ pepper (Park Seed, Totally Tomatoes) – Boy did I enjoy this All-America Selection winner last year. It was such a productive, beautiful plant, and the rainbow-colored medium-hot peppers dried so well that it will now be a staple in my container garden or as an edger in the front of other garden beds.

Bushel & Berry® container soft fruits – (Stark Bros, Big Boxes) – If you’ve got a sunny patio, you can grow expensive soft fruits like blueberries, raspberries and blackberries. Bushel and Berry® gives their compact cultivars cute names that are easy to remember like ‘Jelly Bean’ and ‘Raspberry Shortcake,’ but there’s nothing ‘cute’ about the amazing amount of fruit they produce whilst maintaining an attractive size. An added bonus of growing berries in a container is the ability given the home gardener to easily monitor and control soil pH – that minor detail of soil chemistry that spells the difference between berry bliss and berry blah.

Tips for successful container gardening

When you’re planting up pots of edibles for maximum ornamental value, it’s often wise to use ornamental container shrubs in large ‘anchor’ pots to center your display and provide eye-candy when you’ve just harvested a good deal of the visual interest. Think along the lines of good, compact foliage with high interest such as ‘Golden Elf’ spirea or the evergreen presence of a variegated boxwood.

As with any potted garden, your plants will rely on you more heavily than will their cousins in the ground. Adequate water on a daily (sometimes twice daily) basis is crucial. Once a plant dries out, it takes a long time to recover, as does your desire to continue watering a dried up has-been of a raspberry.

Don’t let that happen, and remember that feeding your plants on a regular schedule will also ensure success. Fertilizer isn’t necessarily about shaking green pellets out of green tubs – there are plenty of organic options for the gardener who doesn’t want to artificially super-size his veggies. I use Espoma’s Garden-Tone for my container vegetables. It’s easy to use, gentle, and gives them extra nutrients in a very acceptable 3-4-4 formulation.

So grab some seeds, grab some seed flats, and starting planting. Your container garden is just a season away.