Madison MoultonNothing beats the taste of a freshly baked homemade pizza – especially when the ingredients come straight from the garden. Even if you’re short on space, you can grow almost everything you need for a delicious pizza sauce in a single container. Some cherry tomatoes, a few fresh basil leaves and a sprinkle of oregano are easy to harvest and the plants all make great short-term companions for a single season.
What You’ll Need:
- Cherry tomatoes
- Basil
- Oregano
- Large pot/container
- Small support (trellis/cage)
- Potting soil
- Perlite
- Peat
Step 1: Make Your Soil Mix
For your plants to grow successfully in a container, the right soil mix is essential. Amending high-quality potting soil with a few materials can greatly improve texture and avoid any problems with drainage or water retention down the line. Combine potting soil with a few handfuls of coco peat to retain water without weighing down the mixture and perlite for improved drainage.
Step 2: Place The Supports
Once your pot is filled slightly with soil mix, it’s far easier to place the supports for your tomato vines just before planting, rather than waiting till the plant is established and risking damage to the existing root system. Your chosen support should be small enough to fit on one side of the container to avoid crowding the herbs in the pot. You can also leave vines to hang off the sides of the pot, but they will grow far better when lifted above the soil.
Step 3: Start Planting
Plant your seedlings, giving the tomatoes a bit more space than the herbs to manage their deep root system. Don’t plant too close together as the plants will struggle to grow or, in the case of the tomatoes, produce fruit when overcrowded. Fill in any gaps with additional soil mix and press down gently to anchor the plants in place.
Water well and move the pot to a sunny spot to establish and grow.
Author: Madison Moulton
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