Hey everyone! I live in College Station, Texas, and I'm on the lookout for heat and drought-resistant veggies and leafy greens that I can grow. Since I'll be out of town on weekends and can't water for about three days, I've had great success with tomatoes and herbs and want to try something new. I love starting plants from seed and I'm limited to 5-gallon buckets as I'm renting. Any recommendations would be super helpful! Thanks!
1 Answer
5 gallons is really the bare minimum for Texas summers, and you'll likely need to water daily. I definitely suggest setting up a drip irrigation system with a timer to make life easier, regardless of how big your garden is. Also, consider using light-colored containers, like tan, since black ones can heat up too much.
For plants, try perpetual spinach (also known as perpetual chard) - it's a tough one that'll thrive in the blazing sun and is even cold-tolerant down to about 18°F. It's perfect for 5-gallon containers and tastes a lot like real spinach when young, or more like cabbage when mature, plus the stalks are great for cooking!
Additionally, longevity spinach is fantastic too; it's tasty and can regrow after a freeze. Summer beans, like pinkeye purple hull cowpeas, can do really well in containers. Oh, and consider a bush variety of okra too! Good luck!
Any resources for drip irrigation?