First Season — or Your Tenth · UK Container Garden Growing

Your First Container Garden

Everything you need to grow real food in pots, anywhere

Twelve practical modules covering the stuff most growers never quite get right — choosing the right pots and compost, watering and feeding, the best crops for containers, herbs, growing vertical, beating pests, and keeping it going all year round. Whether you're looking at an empty balcony or windowsill for the very first time, or you've had your patch for years and still feel like you're winging half of it — this is the proper grounding that makes it all click.

Get the course — £27 See the 12 modules

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Tony Smith on his plot, next to a sunflower taller than he is
Tony Smith · North East England — container gardener & course creator
12
Written modules
12
Months of jobs, covered
30
Day no-quibble refund
Sound familiar?

Does any of this sound like you?

You've just got yourself a few pots and you're standing there looking at a few empty pots thinking "right, where on earth do I start?"

You've tried growing things before but half of it died, half of it got eaten by slugs, and you never really knew why.

You've got no idea what to sow when, what goes where, or whether you've missed the window for the things you actually want to grow.

You end up with a mystery glut of courgettes in August and nothing to do with them — or you miss the harvest window entirely.

You've looked at gardening books but they're either too basic, too complicated, or written for someone with a massive country garden — not a few pots on a balcony or a backyard.

You feel like everyone else seems to just know what they're doing, and you don't want to look daft by asking.

If any of that hit home — this course is exactly what I built for you. Every single one of those was me, not that many years ago. And it's not just for first-timers, by the way — if you've had a few pots for years but never properly cracked your compost, your watering, or why the same things keep going wrong, this'll fill those gaps and all. And I've put everything I learned the hard way into these 12 modules.
Tony Smith with a basket of home-grown vegetables
Tony Smith North East England
Container gardener &
course creator

I made every single mistake going. So you don't have to.

When I first got my container garden, I didn't have a clue. I planted things in the wrong spots, at the wrong time, in the wrong soil. I lost seedlings to slugs because I didn't know you had to protect them. I had courgettes the size of cricket bats because nobody told me you were supposed to pick 'em small. I dug up my potatoes too early, left my onions in too late, and didn't rotate my crops so the same pests just came back year after year.

But I kept coming back. Season after season, I got better. And gradually I started to understand — not just what to do, but why. And that's when everything changed.

I make YouTube videos about my space now, and the question I get asked more than anything else is: "where do I start?" So I decided to put everything together properly. All the stuff I wish someone had told me at the beginning. Written in plain language, for real people with real pots — not a polished book written for somebody with a walled kitchen garden in the Cotswolds.

This is that course.

The Course

12 modules. Everything you need.

Click any module to see what's covered. Work through them in order, or jump to what you need right now.

1What You Can Grow in Pots

You don’t need a garden. A backyard, a balcony, a doorstep or a sunny windowsill is plenty to grow real food — we start by busting the myth that you need ground.

  • What genuinely thrives in containers (and what to skip)
  • Realistic yields — what a few pots can actually feed
  • The easy wins for your very first season
  • Matching crops to the space you’ve actually got
2Reading Your Space

Before you spend a penny on pots, learn your space — how much sun it gets, where the wind hits, and the warm corners that change everything.

  • How to track your sun for a day and read the light
  • Full sun, part-sun and shade — what grows in each
  • Wind, exposure and balcony microclimates
  • Finding — and making — a suntrap
3Choosing Pots & Containers

The pot is your whole space. Get the size, drainage and material right and everything gets easier; get it wrong and you’ll fight it all summer.

  • Pot sizes — and why bigger is far more forgiving
  • Terracotta vs plastic vs fabric vs glazed
  • Drainage done properly — the make-or-break detail
  • Thrifty, recycled and free container ideas
4Compost & Filling Your Pots

Pots need a mix made for pots — never garden soil. Here’s exactly what to fill them with, and how to make it last.

  • Why garden soil fails in containers
  • The right multipurpose mix, and what to add to it
  • Drainage, grit and holding on to water
  • Refreshing and reusing compost cheaply
5Watering — the Number-One Skill

Watering is the make-or-break skill in containers. Get it right and almost everything else forgives you.

  • Why pots dry out so fast — and how to check properly
  • How often, really — reading the plant and the pot
  • Watering technique that keeps roots happy
  • Mulches, saucers and self-watering set-ups
6Feeding Hungry Pots

Pots run out of food in about six weeks. Here’s how to keep everything fed all season without overthinking it.

  • Why containers get hungry so quickly
  • The numbers on the feed bottle, explained simply
  • Leafy vs fruiting — two simple feeding diets
  • Liquid, slow-release and organic options
7The Best Crops for Pots

The crops that genuinely thrive in containers — what to grow, the pot size each one needs, and the handful worth skipping.

  • Tomatoes — the container king, done right
  • Salad and leaves — the fastest wins of all
  • Beans, peas, chillies, courgettes and roots
  • Matching every crop to the right pot
8Herbs — the Easiest Win

Herbs are the best-value crop a container grower can have — tough, compact and endlessly useful.

  • The one split that matters: thirsty vs Mediterranean
  • The easiest herbs to start with
  • Keeping mint and the other spreaders in check
  • Harvesting so they keep on giving
9Going Vertical — Walls & Railings

When you run out of floor, grow upwards. Climbers, trellises, wall pockets and railing planters turn bare walls into harvests.

  • The crops that love to climb
  • Supports, trellises and wigwams for pots
  • Walls, fences, pockets and railing planters
  • Wind, weight and doing it safely
10A Year in Your Container Garden

What to do and when — the simple seasonal rhythm, succession sowing, and keeping something growing nearly all year.

  • The year’s rhythm, season by season
  • Succession sowing for a steady supply
  • Spring push, summer upkeep, autumn wind-down
  • Stretching the season and winter protection
11Pests, Problems & Healthy Pots

Prevention beats cure every time. The pests and problems you’ll meet in pots, how to stop them, and how to fix them gently.

  • Aphids, slugs and the usual suspects
  • The common diseases and how to dodge them
  • Encouraging the allies that do the work for you
  • The gentle, organic toolkit
12Keeping It Going & Growing More

You’ve learned the lot — now keep it going, year on year. Refreshing compost, free plants, saving seed and growing your space.

  • Refreshing and reusing your compost
  • Free plants from cuttings and division
  • Saving your own seed
  • Where to go next — growing your space sensibly
Look inside

What it looks like when you open it

Plain web pages, written plain. No apps, no logins — just click and read.

growmorecookmore.com/course

Your First Container Garden

The modules

  • 1 What You Can Grow in Pots
  • 3 Choosing Pots & Containers
  • 5 Watering — the Number-One Skill
  • 8 Herbs — the Easiest Win
  • 10 A Year in Your Container Garden

…and seven more, in order, ready when you are.

Twelve written modules you can read anywhere — muddy hands and all.

By the end of this course, you'll be able to…

Walk over to your pots with a clear plan for what you're doing that day, that week, that month

Understand your compost, know what it needs, and actually keep it in good heart season by season

Grow a proper selection of vegetables from seed to harvest without it all getting on top of you (literally)

Spot pests and diseases early and deal with them before they wipe out your crops

Know what to sow and do every single month of the year — no more guessing

Harvest at the right time, store it properly, and actually eat what you've grown

Feel like you actually know what you're doing out there — not just winging it

Have a reference guide you'll come back to season after season, year after year

I had courgettes the size of cricket bats because nobody told me you were supposed to pick 'em small.

— Tony, on learning the hard way
Everything included

Here's exactly what you get

12 complete written modules Full guides covering everything from choosing your pots to growing all year round — packed with practical content you can actually use
Written, on purpose — not video Read it out by your pots with muddy hands, skim back to the exact line you need, and it doesn't buffer on a windy balcony
Interactive checklists and tools First-visit checklist, harvest confidence checker, pest diagnosis guides, and more — built into every module
Year-round growing guide (Module 10) What to sow, plant, harvest and do every single month of the year — a reference you'll use for life
Pot-size cheat sheet for every crop The ideal container size for every crop in the course — so you never under-pot again
Lifetime access — yours to keep One-time payment, no subscription, no expiry. Come back as many times as you like, any season.
Works on any device Read at home, on the bus, or on your phone out by your pots — fully mobile-optimised
From the plot

No studio, no walled garden — everything in these courses gets worked out here first.

Tony tending the beds on his plot
Most days you'll find me out here, finding out what works the hard way.
Tony holding a big lettuce harvest
When it goes right, it really goes right.
Tony among tall leeks
Me, being quietly overtaken by leeks.
Get started today

One fair price. Everything in.

One-time payment. No subscription. Instant access to all 12 modules.

Big-name growing courses run £95 and up. Professional qualifications run into the hundreds. This is £27 — because I'm one bloke with an allotment, not an academy. I'd rather it was in people's hands.
Tony Smith at his polytunnel

My No-Quibble Promise

Read the whole thing. If it doesn't save you at least one ruined crop, email me within 30 days and I'll refund you — no forms, no fuss. — Tony

Complete Course
Your First Container Garden
The complete UK container garden course — all 12 modules
£27
One-time payment · lifetime access
  • All 12 complete modules — instant access
  • Year-round container growing guide
  • Interactive tools, checklists & guides
  • Pot-size cheat sheet for every crop
  • Mobile-friendly — read anywhere
  • Lifetime access — yours to keep forever
Get the course — £27
Secure checkout · 30-day money-back guarantee
or

All three courses — £59

Allotment · Polytunnel · Container Garden. £81 if you bought them one at a time — £59 together.

Get all three — £59

Questions? Here's everything people ask.

I'm a complete beginner. Is this course right for me?
Yes — that's exactly who it's for. It assumes you know nothing, and builds from the ground up. You don't need any prior experience, just a few pots (or the intention to get one) and the willingness to have a go.
I've had a few pots for a couple of years but I still struggle. Will I get anything from it?
Almost certainly, yeah. Most people who've been on a few pots a couple of years still have big gaps — watering, feeding, the right compost, knowing when to harvest. The course fills those in properly.
Is it video or written?
Written, on purpose. You can read it out by your pots with muddy hands, skim back to the exact line you need, and it doesn't buffer on a windy balcony. Videos are great for some things — I make plenty — but for a reference you'll come back to for years, written wins.
How long will it take me?
As long as you like. Each module is a proper sit-down read — you could work through the lot over a few evenings, or just open the one you need when you need it. It's a reference, not a box set. There's no schedule and nothing expires.
Is this relevant to my part of the UK?
Yes. It's written for UK container gardens specifically — varieties, timing, soil types, common pests. The month-by-month guide does note that sowing times shift a little across the country (Scotland and northern England are typically 2–3 weeks behind the south), so you'll just adjust slightly for your area.
How do I access the course after buying?
Immediately after purchase you'll get a confirmation email with a link to your course welcome page. All 12 modules are there, ready to open. No apps, no logins — just click and read, on any device.
Will it be updated?
Yes. Lifetime access includes updates — when I improve a module or add something new to the course, you get it at no extra cost. Buy once, keep the best version.
Can I buy it as a gift?
You can. Gumroad has a gift option at checkout — pop in their email address and the course goes to them, not you. A decent present for anyone staring at an empty balcony.
What if I'm not happy with it?
Then I'll refund you, no questions asked, within 30 days. Just drop me an email at tonycsmithallotment@gmail.com. I want people to actually find this useful — if it's not right for you, fair enough.
Do I need anything special to read it?
Just a web browser — Chrome, Safari, Firefox, anything. Works on phone, tablet, laptop, desktop. No software to install, no app to download.
Why only £27?
Because I want people to actually buy it and use it. I've seen courses charge £150+ for less content. This has 12 proper modules, a pot-size cheat sheet, a full year's almanac — the lot. I'd rather it be in more people's hands at a fair price than sitting on a shelf at an expensive one.

Right. Let's get you growing.

Everything I know about container garden growing — written up properly, in plain language, for anyone who wants to actually understand their space — first season or tenth. It doesn’t have to be a guessing game. Let's do this properly.

Get the course — £27

This course is £27. Or get all three — allotment, polytunnel and containers — for £59. Get the bundle →

From the plot, most weeks

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