Question
Hi.  I've never grown much of anything in my life, but this year I bought 2
small pots (approx 18" diameter and 16" tall).  I put one tomato plant into
each one. One pot also has a pepper plant, and they each have a couple of
marigolds.   The area they are in gets only a couple of hours of sunlight per
day.  I purchased somewhat expensive soil (you know, it was $4.99/bag
instead of $2.50) and put some stryofoam in the bottom few inches of the
pots for drainage.

My question is about fertilizer.  I read or heard somewhere that potted
vegtables need more fertilizer than those in the ground because of the more
limited environment.  But then another friend who eats organically reminded
me to be careful what I put into the pot, as I'd more or less be eating it.

So my question is what type of  fertilizer you recommend, if any?  I would
prefer it be non-chemical, and I'd prefer to only purchase a small amount
since I don't have a lot of storage space and only have the two pots.  (If I have
extra, I guess I could give it away).

Appreciate your thoughts very much,
S. Mabel
Boton

Answer
Hi Scott, ok, first of all, you don't have to worry about eating the fertilizer contents from your vegetables, they utilize the nutrients but they don't store them in their produce. Now, container veggies need to be watered more often and I use Miracle Grow for Tomatoes on all my veggies, be aware though, that the nutrient, Calcium, is used up quickly in containers, so when the plants form flowers, take a couple of Calcium tablets and crush them up into a powder and about once a week mix it in with the soil, this will prevent a condition called blossom end rot, which manifests itself in the tomatoes by rotting the bottom of the tomato itself as it ripens. Just watch for that and make sure when you water, to water it until water comes out the drainage hole, this way you know you have gotten to the entire root ball, this is more important when the tomato has filled the container with roots, the peppers aren't any problem, they are pretty easy to grow as long as they get adequate sun and irrigation. You say they only get a couple of hours of sun, this isn't enough, they need at least 6 hours, so this could be problem which will manifest itself by not giving you any flowers. Incidentally the Miracle Grow for Tomatoes is good for all your veggies too. Happy Gardening...Nick