Hanging fruits and veggies

[BonnieR]

Have you tried growing hanging fruits and vegetables? Do you have any tips?

 

[JGPangi]

I grew bitter gourd last year and I can say they are absolutely great land space savers. You just have to make sure you have a sturdy trellis for them to grow out on and, though it is so much fun to just watch them grow and grow, trimming is your best friend when it comes to maximizing the fruit/vegetable bearing aspect of the plant. Also, it makes the base of the plant much sturdier.

 

[Abqu]

I've heard that in the right conditions, strawberries do very well in hanging baskets. You may want to do some extra reading, though. Another option would be to put some good-looking herbs in hanging spots.

 

[ACSAPA]

I saw this nice multi tiered hanging basket that has herbs and lettuce growing in it and I think this idea would save most people a lot of space.

 

[helagumamela]

We tried bitter gourd every now and then, but they just won't grow! The chickens eat the leaves, so they die. Given the chance, I will try cucumbers. However, I am not that interested in climbers/vines for that matter.

 

[Rosyrain]

The only veggies I have ever seen in hanging pots are tomatoes, but I so like the hanging basket idea in the photo above and I could probably use it to grow some herbs in my house. I love all the great ideas I get on this site.

 

[marlingardener]

I tried to trellis our cucumbers in the 2013 garden--the equivalent of hanging vegetables outside. Absolute failure--one cucumber from three vines. Now I let them sprawl and get enough to share.
Acsapa, that is a beautiful idea--herbs and lettuces combined in a multiple tier basket. I have a few herbs on the windowsill during the winter, and hang herbs to dry in the passageway between the kitchen and the laundry room for winter use. Some of our perennial herbs I put in the barn on a shelf where they get some sunlight, and can overwinter thyme, oregano, sage, and marjoram that way. A trip to the barn to get fresh herbs is a lot more trouble than snipping them from your hanging basket!

 

[DancingLady]

I have never heard of hanging fruits and veggies, they are often rather heavy, so that might be a challenge. You can definitely hang lighter weight plants really easily. I love that picture of the hanging herbs and leafy greens. I want one for next year really bad now!

 

[KimmyMarkks]

I've only tried growing herbs in hanging baskets. I think it would be too difficult to grow vegetables as many of them get too heavy for the baskets. A great herb to grow in the basket is Mint. I don't know why but I always think this is one of the prettiest herbs. It also spreads very fast so limiting it in a basket will prevent it from taking over your whole garden.

 

[headfullofbees]

You can grow many veg in hanging baskets; climbing beans can just as easily become trailing beans, for example.
There are 2 advantages, space saved, and getting them out of the reach of soil-borne pests.
The major disadvantage is that they take much more watering, sometimes twice a day, and this has the side-effect of sluicing out nutrients and minerals.

 

[IcyBC]

I haven't done any hanging basket with fruits and vegetables, but it is a great idea for people with small area in the yard. I have seen tomatoes growing in basket upside down and so was strawberries.

The photo of herbs and lettuce above is a fantastic idea!

 

[Pat]

I tried tomatoes in one of those hanging plants one summer. It did not work out very good. The plants would not grow.

 

[Corzhens]

What a coincidence. I am in the process of purchasing pots for hanging plants particularly for our mint which is very good for the hanging pot. However, my schedule is so tight lately so that project is on hold. I had seen on tv a tomato plant that is hanging with the dangling branches having fruits. But I wouldn't dare that because I know the tomato is not a hardy plant, so easy to die.