After I tossed a half ton of garbage, junk, and nasty furniture left over from previous tenants, I now have a nice big deck at the place I'm moving into! Even better, the landlords had a pressure washer, and today I just about finished washing it up! So now that the deck is no longer dangerously slick with microflora, my immediate thought is...
"It's Grow Time!"
But what shall I grow in? In the past, I've used recycled pots from garden stores, but I want something nicer...
1) Who has recommendations for planters and containers?
2) What features do you enjoy or value most in container beds?
I think my #1 criteria for the system is that there is no soil-to-deckwood contact, so the deck doesn't deteriorate. After that I'm thinking portability / modularity / good size varieties, as I imagine I might use future deck growies (trees, shrubs, greens, grains, tubers, etc.) as nursery stock, transporting them in their modular containers to my future farmstead Zone 0. Also, no standing water for mosquitoes!
Do you have a growing container, brand, method, or system that you love which is suitable for decks? DIY systems are welcome too, of course!
I have been using half whisky barrels since forever. I got them cheap, back in the way before times, and with a bit of maintenance they keep on going. Oak is amazing. Volume is critical -- they hold enough moisture for watering once a day.
Mine sit on a deck (tomatoes and peppers!), but I put thin slats underneath to provide ventilation and prevent moisture from creating perpetual wet spots. I also shift them around a little during the grow season. No local rot after seven years.
Also: the bottom half is filled with rotted wood, acting as a sponge, so it's rare that water overflows onto the deck.
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