How to start a container garden.

You can start a container garden with a few pots and a sunny corner. These guides will help you choose the right containers, soil and plants, then get the watering and light right once they're growing.

5 guides Containers & pots · Potting soil · Watering · Light & placement Updated through the growing season

Container gardening can be as small as a few herbs outside the kitchen door or as ambitious as a patio full of vegetables. Start with the space, light and time you have, then build from there. You can always add more containers next season.

Container size depends on what you're growing. Lettuce and many herbs are happy in fairly shallow containers, while tomatoes, potatoes and other larger crops need considerably more room. If you already know what you'd like to grow, the container size chart gives a good starting size for each crop.

The five steps below are the decisions every container garden starts with, each linked to the guide that covers it. If you would rather read the whole thing in one place, the beginner's guide walks through all five in order.

Start here

Start with these five things

Choose your containers

Container size affects how much room the roots have and how quickly the mix dries out. Start by finding a suitable size for what you want to grow.
Choosing containers
Use potting mix

Containers need a mix that holds moisture while still draining freely. Ordinary garden soil usually isn't a good substitute.
Potting soil and mixes
Check your light

Spend a day noticing how much direct sun your growing space receives. That will decide which plants are likely to do well there.
Light and placement
Choose what to grow

Herbs, lettuce, peppers, compact tomatoes and many other crops grow well in containers. Start with plants suited to your space and light.
Browse plants and crops
Learn when to water

Pots dry out faster than garden beds, especially in warm weather. Learn what dry potting mix looks and feels like rather than relying only on a schedule.
Watering containers