If you have a truly small gardening space, the Start Pickin’ planter box might work for you. It is 10” wide and 20” long, and 10” deep. It is made by Emsco, and the part number is 2375. The price seems to range from $20-$35, depending on sales.
It is a self-watering planter, with an internal screen that separates the soil from a gallon water reservoir below it. You water the plants by pouring water through a black plastic tube that connects to the water reservoir.
The directions say you will need to add 0.75 cubic feet of potting mix, dolomite, fertilizer, water, and seeds or seedlings – none of that is included. We’ve have a tutorial on how to prepare soil for similar planter boxes.
The Start Pickin’ planter does not have wheels attached. Other, bigger, self-watering planter boxes – like the City Picker box or Earthbox - do have wheels. I do miss having wheels on my Start Pickin’ box, but it’s small size makes it relatively easy to move.
When we purchased our Start Pickin’ planter, the description said that it came with an included mulch cover. A mulch cover is mean to lie on top of the soil and keep water from evaporating so quickly. We did not receive a mulch cover in our package, but our plants have been growing fine without one.
The directions say you can grow tomato, pepper, eggplant in the Start Pickin’ planter, in areas that get at last 8 hours of sun each day. You can grow lettuce, spinach, or arugula in partially shaded areas. We are using our Start Pickin’ box to grow a strawberry plant and some flowers this year on a sunny balcony.
