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If you’re craving homegrown goodies but lack garden space, you’ll find fabulous new vegetable introductions that work wonderfully in your edible containers.

While many tomatoes can grow in pots, you’ll need a large, 5-gallon container to grow traditional varieties. However, with advances in breeding, new, compact varieties make the perfect addition to container gardens, even growing beautifully on a patio table!

We’ve highlighted Quick and Easy Summer Sun Containers and Quick and Easy Summer Shade Containers, now let’s talk about creating a delicious buffet grown in quick and easy summer edible containers using the 1 plant, 2 plants, 3 plants method.

One for Edibles

How about an edible hanging basket? Lots of new varieties in edibles that are bred to work perfectly in a hanging basket or container including these…

Midnight Cascade Blueberries - the first hanging basket blueberries perfect for edible containers
The first hanging basket blueberry on the market, Blueberry Midnight Cascade! White, bell-shaped flowers in the spring lead to an abundant summer crop of blueberries. The ripe fruit is packed with antioxidants and aromatic, vanilla flavors. The foliage has hints of red that will darken in the fall weather.
Pepper Pot-o-peno can be grown as a hanging basket or in an edible container
Pot-a-peno is a jalapeno pepper with a compact habit perfect for growing in containers and hanging baskets. Plentiful small, green jalapeño fruits have a traditional spicy zip that is great to add a bit of spice to any dish. Simply leave the fruit on the vine and they will ripen to red for a sweet, spicy flavor.
Strawberry Summer Breeze Cherry is ideal in both hanging baskets and containers for summer long strawberries
The lovely pink Strawberry Summer Breeze Cherry Blossom will go on all summer long in both hanging baskets and containers.  Easy-to-grow and delicious strawberries throughout the summer make this a must for all edible gardens.

Add edible containers to make your patio a living fresh food table!

Basil Everleaf Emerald Towers - Great for Edible Containers
While basil is often considered a companion plant, you’ll want to grow Basil Everleaf Emerald Towers alone in a container. This tasty basil lives up to its name: it produces delicious flavor for much longer than other varieties, flowering 12 weeks later than other basils. The tall, columnar habit is perfect for sunny, small space gardens.
Bountiful Blue Blueberry is great for edible containers and works well in southern gardens
If you crave the sweet taste of blueberries but worry that you don’t have space or the correct soil to grow them, you’ll love Bountiful™ Blue Blueberry. Not only does it produce abundant, delicious fruit, it looks gorgeous in container gardens. Its new growth is bright red and transitions to a glossy green. Plus, this variety is a perfect choice for southern and western gardeners, as it requires fewer chill hours to produce fruit.
Allium Quattro makes a great edible container for any patio
The Allium Quattro F1 is both a beautiful and delicious patio or garden perennial. The Allium Quattro F1 flowers in July for about 7 weeks. It has ball-shaped purple flowers with a vase life of up to 3 weeks. An additional benefit is that the flowers attract flower-loving insects, such as bees and butterflies. The Allium Quattro has thick and tasteful leaves that taste like an onion with a slight bit of garlic.

Two for Edibles

By adding two edibles together in one container, you can create your own perfect combination for any recipe! 

Tomato Siam is a small but delicious tomato plant that works indoors and outdoors
Plant a classic combination to enjoy this summer: tomatoes and basil! Try the pretty, delicious, compact tomato varieties Siam Tomato. Growing only 12 to 18 inches tall it is small enough to be grown indoors or out. Add classic Genovese basil to the container, and you’re ready for summer bruschetta.
Pepper Snackabelle Red works in your container garden
If sweet peppers are a staple in your favorite dishes, try Pepper Snackabelle Red, another compact variety perfect for containers. Its mini-bell peppers ripen from green to deep red and are perfect for eating at any stage of ripeness. Add pretty orange marigolds to the pot to help deter pests, giving a bit of contrast to the container.
Pepper Fresh Bites Orange is a spicy pepper for edible containers
If you prefer your peppers on the hot side, plant Patio Perfect Hot Fajita Pepper in your container. This pretty, compact pepper plant grows beautifully on balconies or patio tables—or even on a sunny kitchen windowsill! Add cilantro to the container, and you’re ready for homemade salsa.
Beginner Tip for the New Gardener

Make sure to feed your edible container plants throughout the season, as nutrients drain from the soil with frequent watering.

Three for Edibles

If you have a super-sized container, like a half-barrel, try planting the traditional “Three Sisters” garden: pole beans, corn, and squash. Plant the corn in the center, surrounding it with the bean seeds. As the beans grow, they’ll use the corn as a natural trellis. Add vining squash to the outer edge of the container, allowing the plant to “spill” over the sides. It’s a great container to plant with kids, plus you can use this combination to celebrate the Year of the Garden Bean!

Adding 3 or more herbs together to make your own edible containers

Herbs work well together and are the perfect edible container for your patio. Plant together all the herbs for a specific task like for your baking or barbecue needs or just put a few together that you use often. Herbs are fun plants for container growing throughout the entire season.

Herb-A-Licious Baking Up A Storm for your container herb garden
Herb-A-Licious Bakin’ Up a Storm™ will fill your home with fragrant lavender scones, baskets of savory rosemary biscuits, decadent cakes topped with refreshing peppermint icing and stevia-sweetened iced tea.
Mix-A-Herb Barbecue Gold a great herb container for your patio

Mix-A-Herb Barbecue Gold brings gold color to your patio and delicious herbs to your barbeque. This Mix-A-Herb includes Salvia Goldblatt, Thyme Mystic Lemon, and Oregano Gold Nugget.

Mix-A-Herb Pizza Herb Container to spice up your pizzas

Making your own pizza or spicing up store-bought is easy with Mix-A-Herb Pizza edible container. These containers include Rosemary Abraxas, Thyme Mystic Lemon, and Oregano Diabolo.

Summer Edible Containers are as easy as 1-2-3!

“This post is provided as an educational/inspirational service of the National Garden Bureau and our members. Please credit and link to National Garden Bureau and author member when using all or parts of this article.”

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Quick and Easy Summer Edible Containers using 1, 2, or 3 plants
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