Drip-it Pro Watering System - I don't have much luck with these but it's better than nothing.  Last time I used them the water level was the same after several days and I couldn't figure out how to make it work.

Fill up the water tank and secure the solar panel for my DIY solar drip water system - this system is setup to water my most water hungry plants - Mandevilla, Fairy rose, and herbs box.

Load up the two Earthboxes with water.

Watering crystals - first year I've used these and they seem to do a decent job.  I mix them with the soil and use them mostly for the plants under shade.  So far the plants only need occasional watering on hot days.  I don't use them for edible plants because I'm not sure if they are scientifically proved to be safe.

And hope for the best! Stay tune for my next post to see what my garden looks like after I come back from vacation.

I wanted to make an Asian spicy eggplant dish, so I got two chilies from the Thai dragon pepper plant.  I knew it was too soon to harvest the chilies because it's best to let the peppers develop the spicy seeds a little longer to get the maximum scoville count! These peppers were not spicy enough.  It's fun to pop fresh peppers in my mouth right from the plant! But only for now when the peppers are still young, I dare not to do that for the older peppers! If you're interested to grow peppers, take a look at the Organic Gardening article about techniques and tips of growing different kinds of peppers.

Overall I'm very satisfy with the Earthbox.  It has made the watering very easy and you don't have to worry about over-watering--when you see water coming out from the spout on the side that means enough.   Also, no fertilizer is needed during the season except at initial planting time.  We've had a couple of hot and humid days and I had to water them everyday but most of the time I've been watering it every other day.  The only thing I'd like to change is the tomato cage. I was trying to save some money and bought the cheap steel tomato cage.  One day we had a really severe thunderstorm with wind gust up to 60 mph, the tomato cage tipped over and almost broke the plant in half.  Now I have a twist tie to secure the cage against the deck railings.

Compare to last year's Celebrity tomato planted in a normal container, these plants in a Earthbox definitely look more healthy and produces more fruits.  The Sunset Magazine blogs about the Earthbox and compared it against a tomato plant grown in a normal pot.  The writer talks about how she was a skeptic at first and became a convert.  Take a look at Confessions of an Earthbox convert.

From this to this:

Sprite tomato on the left, Siberian tomato on the right:

Two Japanese eggplants in one Earthbox side by side:

So what kinds of vegetables can you grow in containers? Eggplants, tomatoes, peppers, zucchinis, cucmbers, loose-leaf lettuce, and bush beans do very well in containers.  Here are some suggestions from NYBG for container vegetable gardening:

Tomato: 'Patio Princess', 'Tumbling Tom', 'Husky Gold', 'Sweet 100', 'Roma', and 'Better Bush Improved'

Bush cucumbers: 'Salad Bush', 'Spacemaster', and 'Fanfare'

Watermelon: 'Bush Sugar Baby'

Cantaloupe: 'Honey Bun'

Pumpkin: 'Baby Bear', and 'Baby Boo'

Carrot: 'Short n' Sweet', and 'Little Finger'

Lettuce: 'Baby Oak'

And of course, a blog post is not the same without pictures, so here are some pictures I took at NYBG.  Happy container vegetable gardening!

The New York Botanical Garden
200th St
Bronx, NY 10458
http://www.nybg.org/

Thai dragon pepper is a very hot pepper and used mostly in Asian cooking.  Be careful when you handle it because you'll definitely feel the burn.  I don't know how many times I've forgotten about this and rubbed my eyes after touching these peppers, it's not something you want to experience! I don't know how my co-workers from India do it but they actually pop these in their mouth like they are popcorn!

It's very easy to grow, all it needs is full sun and moisture.  Don't rush to harvest them because the pungency won't be as intense.  Take a look at an interesting article from Organic Gardening magazine about different kinds of peppers that has bigger yields, earlier harvest, and more intense flavors.

Ingredients

• Earthbox Garden Kit (includes one EarthBox, one aeration screen, one water fill tube, two fitted covers, four casters, 16 oz 7-7-7 plant food, and 16 oz dolomite)
• 2 cu.ft Organic potting mix (you can use any potting mix but I used Miracle Grow Organic Choice)

Steps

1. The Earthbox Garden Kit includes one EarthBox, one aeration screen, one water fill tube, two fitted covers, four casters, 16 oz 7-7-7 plant food, and 16 oz dolomite.

2. Install the four casters to the bottom of the EarthBox.  This is optional but it gives you the ability to move the Earthbox around, it gets really heavy when you fill it with almost 2 cu.ft of potting mix!

3. Set the plastic aeration screen firmly to the bottom.  Attach the fill tube and press it firmly to the round cutout in the corner of the screen.

4. Pack the two corner cutouts in the screen with moist potting mix.  It's important to pack it firmly because this is how the plants get water.  It's okay if you let some of the potting mix fall through the screen.

5. Continue adding potting mix until it reaches the top 2-3 inches of the pot.

6. Sprinkle the dolomite on top of the potting mix.

7. Mix the dolomite with the top 3 inches of the potting mix.

8. Add some more potting mix to cover the dolomite.

9. Create a small trough and then pour the dry fertilizer in a strip.  The location of the fertilizer varies, refer to the placements guide.  Cover the trough with moist potting mix and pat down.  Do not mix the fertilizer.

10 & 11.  Add some more potting mix until it is about 2 inches above the rim of the box. Align one of the round cutout holes over the fill tube and carefully stretch the cover over the top of the EarthBox.

12. Plan where you want to place the seedlings (refer to the placements guide).  In this case, I'm planting two japanese eggplants.

13. Cut and "X" in the cover for each plant.  The "X" should be the size of the rootball.

14. The eggplant in its place.  Water through the tube until water comes out of the overflow spout.  

15. This is the other Earthbox I planted with Sprite tomotoes on the left, and Siberian tomatoes on the right.

That's it! Just make sure it gets 6-8 hours of full sun.  If everything goes well, all it needs is water for the whole season!

I mean... really... fish heads?!?! 

To add on to that, you can also put shrimp, crab, or lobster shells.  Doesn't it sounds like the kitchen garbage bin?

I struggled to keep my vegetables watered last year.  The Earthbox is supposed to cut the frequency of watering in half because of its large reservoir.  It claims to double the yield of fruits and vegetables.   It sounds too good to be true but I'm willing to give it a try.  I wanted to order two of them but it's really hard to justify spending $100 on it, so for now I'll stick with one.  It is being shipped right now and I'll report back as soon as I get it.  

Anyway, I was thrilled to hear about the Obama's family plan of a new White House vegetable garden in their yard! Elementary school students are going to help out with this project and help plant fruits, vegetables, and herbs in the next few weeks.  I can't wait to see pictures of the new vegetable garden!

- Six pepper picks:

1. Jimmy Nardello - long and narrow, harvest in 80 days
2. Sweet Banana - carrot-shaped, harvest in 65 days
3. Pritavit - thick wall, juicy, heavy yielding and early, harvest in 75 days
4. Alba Regia - thick wall, sweet, crunchy, harvest in 90 days
5. Lipstick - looks like a jalapeno, intense sweet flavor, harvest in 73 days
6. Corno di Toro - heavy yielding and early, harvest in 75-80 days

- do not plant too early, wait until soil is about 60F, and daytime temperatures between 70 and 80F, nighttime temperature stay above 55F.  Planting too early will stunt the plant's growth.
- Add dish detergent into liquid fertilizer helps the fertilizer coat the leaf surface (1/4 teaspoon in 1 quart of water)
- Add worm castings in the soil around the base of the plant for nutrients and give the peppers a good start in the beginning.
- Add mulch only about 4-6 weeks after planting because the mulch will insulate the cool soil and prevents it from warming up.
- Author recommends "Age Old Organics fertilzer Age Old Bloom".
- I had the blossom drop problem at the beginning and the author recommends spraying the plants with liquid kelp at 4-week intervals.