Growing veggies in cardboard boxes?

**jolenegreen2** · 03-10-2009, 01:40 PM

Anyone ever done this? i thinki am going to try it with my lettuce, carrots and radishes! Those bugs always get the best of my root veggies! LOL

**Gardengal18** · 03-10-2009, 01:49 PM

I would think that the cardboard would become very soggy and yucky from constant watering after a while No?

**suki** · 03-10-2009, 01:57 PM

Also, chemicals from the cardboard will leach into your soil... I wouldn't recommend it. But, I've never tried it.

**mamamia** · 03-10-2009, 02:51 PM

I guess if you lined it with a plastic bag it would work. Than I'm guessing they couldn't get caught in the rain though. It would be cheap to do, but you gotta have the right conditions, like keeping them uner the eaves from rain. I could manage that part, so might try a couple. Not a bad idea!

Theresa

**Grainlady** · 03-10-2009, 04:02 PM

I usually grow my leaf lettuce in some of my flower pots. As soon as it gets too hot for lettuce (mid-May), I pull that out, amend the soil, purchase 1/2-price annuals to put in the pots. In mid-August, after the Kansas heat and wind beats these plants to death, I pull them out, amend the soil in the pots and planters, and plant a fall crop of leaf lettuce.

I don't know why you couldn't use long plastic planters and pots for your container garden. I'm with the others, I'd stay away from a box. The moisture will quickly take it's toll on it -- from inside as well as outside. Who knows what toxins are available in the box - especially if it's coated or has printing ink on it, as already mentioned.

Another alternative is straw bale gardening:

http://www.beginner-gardening.com/st...gardening.html

**StaceyS** · 03-10-2009, 04:11 PM

I tried it last year, they only last one season, but we don't get much rain here, so all they got was daily watering. You can compost the cardboard after the year...

**onencgirl** · 03-10-2009, 04:39 PM

I have a very small yard so I took an old hard plastic wading pool and planted some veggies in it. It worked out very well. I do the upside down tomatoes and hang them on my clothesline posts. They are metal and make a T.