5. Your box should have holes at the bottom for drainage (if it doesn’t, you’ll need to drill a few holes). Line the bottom of the container box to block the holes so that you don’t lose a lot of soil or water. While rocks work, it is best to line the bottom with something that blocks the holes but still allows the soil to breathe. I recommend plastic window screening, a breathable felt, or pieces of broken clay pots.

6. Fill up your container with high quality organic soil half-way, and then mix in your soil amendment. An amendment will give your plants the extra nutrition they need (I highly recommend E.B. Stone’s worm castings or Malibu compost). Mix in the compost with the last few layers of soil.

Next add your edible starts. “Pop” the starts from their container by pushing the bottom of the individual start, and if you need to, let gravity help by turning them upside down. If they’ve been in small containers for a while, they might be “root bound”. If that’s the case, you should use your fingers to break up the roots a bit so that they are ready to settle in to their new home. Make a hole in the new container to accept it. Place the start in the hole and, gently, firm the soil around the roots by pushing the soil down with your fingers. You want the roots to be secure.

7.  Once your starts are in, pat the dirt around them so that they are nice and compact. Add more soil around the start and continue to push the soil down to keep the it secure!

8.  Water the plants to help roots establish themselves in their new home! You may need to add more soil once you water. Make sure to water each day and keep the soil nice and moist.

If you have any questions, feel free to leave them below in the comments.

Happy gardening!

-The Rookie Urban Farmer