Redneck city gardening-otherwise known as container gardening

You might be a redneck if … you use an old plastic storage bin for a garden. I went over to the so-called “dark side” of redneckedness by using an old green storage bin as a garden container.

Here’s my latest addition to my container garden

We filled a huge storage bin with potting soil and planted Mexican heather and zinnias
We filled a huge storage bin with potting soil and planted Mexican heather and zinnias

We started our container garden last summer when we knew we wanted to grow flowers and food but didn’t really want to put in a permanent garden. We figure that because we rent, it didn’t make sense to make that kind of investment-or to leave something for future tenants to have to manage.

Our container garden is mostly traditional pots with a handful of the half whiskey barrel type containers.

We like to use a variety of containers (no, the grill isn't for flowers)
We like to use a variety of containers (no, the grill isn’t for flowers)

The green bin is the only “redneck style” container we have but I admit I want more. That’s actually what I like most about the concept of container gardens, that you’re not limited to the traditional pots and planters. Perhaps the most adorable containers I’ve seen are simple household items such as old boots or even a child’s swimming pool. The pool idea is perfect for children who want their own garden or if you want a decent-sized vegetable garden and looks aren’t terribly important.

What’s cool about container gardening is that in reality, it’s not redneck at all. In fact, it’s one of the most effective, efficient methods of city gardening. We live in the downtown area of our city and as I mentioned, we rent. Having a container garden allows us to have the best of both worlds in that we have nice flowers and some fresh produce, but we don’t have tilled up land.

Container gardening is effective for us for yet another reason. I’m a person with a disability and traditional gardening would be incredibly difficult for me to manage. Raised-bed gardening or container gardening is ideal for the elderly, disabled or anyone else who struggles to crouch on the ground for extended periods of time.

gravatar image sunflower
This sunflower is the only “bright” picture I have of that first container garden. It is now the inspiration for this blog’s overall design.

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