Vegetable & Container Gardening
Grow your own (almost free) vegetables and herbs, even without a yard
Containers you might use:
Empty metal cans
Empty 5 gallon buckets
Used pallets
Low cost ways to partially fill your containers:
Leaves
Town or city compost
Vegetable scraps
Top each container up with at least 4” of good potting soil
Get seeds for things you like to eat at a seed library
Plant!
Sponsored by Gade Farm
Keep your Food Local
Watch this free, in-depth webinar series covering everything you need to know about starting your own seeds.
Click here for an easy approach to vegetable gardening for beginners.
Find garden space in a community garden in the Capital District.
Find a Farmers Market or a CSA (Community Supported Farm)
Check out these garden education projects in Albany, Troy, and Schenectady.
Native Plants in Containers
Check out this video about basic principles for container gardens but please research each plant before growing to ensure they align with your personal gardening goals.
Recommended Reading
Books
Darke, Rick and Tallamy, Dr. Douglas, The Living Landscape: Designing for Beauty and Biodiversity in the Home Garden
Lawson, Nancy, The Humane Gardener
Leopold, Donald J., Native Plants of the Northeast: A Guide for Gardening & Conservation
Lorimer, Uli, The Northeast Native Plant Primer
McGrath, Anne, Wildflowers of the Adirondacks
Mizejewski, David, Attracting Birds, Butterflies, and Other Backyard Wildlife, Expanded Second Edition (Creative Homeowner) 17 Projects & Step-by-Step Instructions to Give Back to Nature (National Wildlife Federation)
Tallamy, Dr. Douglas, Bringing Nature Home
Tallamy, Dr. Douglas, Nature’s Best Hope
Tallamy, Dr. Douglas, The Nature of Oaks
Sousa, Elle, The Green Garden
Stein, Sara, Noah’s Garden: Restoring the Ecology of Our Own Back Yards
Native Plant Shopping Guide, https://www.hgcny.org/projects/shopping/ (downloadable guide in PDF format)