[cc85]

Hi there , I am currently a third year Product Design student. I have chosen to look at vegetable growing as my major project.

My research so far as shown that people are become more interested in where their food comes from , how it is grown , food miles and so on.

However from the people I have inteviewed most like the idea of growing  thier own vegetables but seem to think it is difficult. I have been to a local allotment to discuss this and it is not the case.

Almost any container can be used to grow vegetables and fruit yet there seems to be very few products on the market that make it an accessible and easy thing to  do. Something that would an off the shelf product providing all the information and seeds requied ,  I believe would make it far more accesible for adults and children.

My intial thoughts are something that can be contained in a small area , and moved around if required.  Featuring several different sections which would allow different vegtables and herbs to be planted.


Any advice or any thoughts you have would be great.
Any potentail downfalls to such a product.

[WG.]

Hi cc85 and welcome.

I grow a lot of things in containers.  I also have a large garden but prefer containers for certain veg which can be invasive in the garden e.g. horseradish, chinese artichokes, jerusalem artichokes, mint

Drawbacks?  Some care is required for watering if the container used isn't generously sized.  It also takes a lot more soil/compost than you would imagine.

[mdueal]

I saw such things in B+Q yesterday - grow your own toms/salad/herbs etc already in container with all 'ingredients' and they now sell ranges of 'patio vegetables' suitable for pots and containers so they already exist. obviously would not feed family but makes you feel good to do something if dont want hassle of allotment i suppose.

[cc85]

I did check B and Q the other day. But didn't see such a product . I will have another look. I was thinking of something that would allow you to grow a fair amount of fruit or veg or a wide variety. Maybe a system that has different containers branching off it.

Providing the user with the information and seeds would also be key to this product as would the branding and marketing.

[WG.]

Providing the user with the information and seeds would also be key to this product as would the branding and marketing.

You may very well be correct CC but, speaking personally, I'd never shell out big money for a package like that.  All the containers I use are recycled one way or another, e.g forestry sacks, euroboxes, 25/15/5 litre bins.  And half whisky barrels - they at least look nice too.

[Sally A]

Whereabouts in the UK did you do your research on folks that can't find suitable containers or thought veg was too hard to grow CC85?

[cc85]

Hi , I did around 30 surveys around Leicester. I am actually in University in Cardiff though.

Its not meant to be targeted at those in the know to be fair.

[Sally A]

a lot depends on the type of houses they live in (re space to grow), their age (ie many younger ones never saw their parents or grandparetns garden so have not subliminally taken in information), a lot won't have the time or make the time, the posher ones tend to buy organic and think that money will always get them food.

Triple your price, put it in Harrods, and the posh 'uns might think it awfully rustic to grow a lettuce.  The less well off will probably make do with grow bags or pots if they are that way inclined.

30 doesn't seem an awful lot, out of our office of 30, 3 grow as much as they can, 1 dabbles with summer crops, and one bloke grows it but never seems to eat it. One wants to learn and the rest have limited interest.

[Cynara]

Are you looking to design the containers yourself cc? If you want units in a small space that can be fixed together or be moved around, you might try googling 'Square Foot Gardening' for planting ideas.

[cc85]

Yes that is right , I would be designing the containers . Although I may do a device /system where you could use your own pots/containers in addition to the ones provided. This would allow people to easily change the style of it.

Again an initial idea is to have the base which would provide space for growing potatoes , then raised above this supported by maybe a central spine would be smaller containers in which you could plant other vegetables and herbs.

Maybe it would be styled so it wouldn't look out of place in the court yard of a   contemporary styled restaurant that wants to give the impression it grows its own veg or maybe styled to suit a contemporary garden.

Another reason for doing such a project is that , local councils will soon be providing many households with composters. This will enable them to reduce the amount of residual waste that goes to landfill , for which they are heavily taxed for.

[Top Cat]

Hi cc85

I grow a lot of thing in containers/ troughs that hubbie has made as well as small veggie plots around the garden. I don't have an allotment but we manage to get a fair few veggie/herbs and a few fruits in our smallish  garden.  Mostly we use/recycle items to "make" containers. I'm trying to make it all a bit more of a kitchen garden this year so we'll have lots more flowers grown with the veg. Oh i do have a greenhouse which makes my life a bit easier.  We're in Cardiff !

[splodger]

lots of veg will grow ok in pots - but you can end up with lots of pots - which means lots of watering

if you go for larger pots - then moving them is always a problem - even with heavy duty sack trucks

a light weight interlocking thing might work - although not me cup of tea - a bit gimmicky

i too would rather use some form of recycling for my containers - like wg (because i'm as skint as he is tight fisted   )

as for spuds - a black plastic sack works as well as any pot - and tyres work well for late spuds too

you need to have a bigger sample of opinions though - if i had based my research on a sample of just 30 people when i was at uni - i would never have got my first  

you have come to to the right place - for inspiration - oh to be used and abused   :roll:

[cc85]

Top Cat , would it be possible to arrange a visit to see your garden. It would be useful as a part of my research.

Yes I agree I will need to ask more people.

Maybe go to a few work places and get the staff to fill in questionnaires.

[sweet nasturtium]

If I could ask you to design a plant container for my contemporary courtyard garden:

It would have wheels so I could move it around without scratching my decking/granite/marble/terrazzo .  

It would be square or rectangular so I could stand it next to others which I could buy to "add on".  

It would be made of a material that would retain water but be insulated enough not to absorb the heat of the sun.  

It would have a built in "saucer" for drainage, with space for a moisture retaining spongy thing.

It would have a finish that could be washed easily and would never fade.

[mushroom]

Recently Ive been using empty 25l containers that washing machine liquid comes in. They're made from polypropylene. The bottom is easy to drill out for holes/drainage. I also use plastic pop bottle bottoms for small containers (and the top halves to stop netting sliding down bamboo cane).