Container gardeners - how to protect containers in fall/winter?

Question

A big thank you to everyone who suggested months ago I try to grow a garden in containers, because I didn't want to dig up my small yard. The fruits/veggies are still flourishing and feeding the entire neighborhood. Anyway, for the wintertime, what do I do with the really good potting mix "soil" I have and the containers themselves? Do I leave the potting mix in the containers and just put them away like that? I have a storage shed, or do I leave them outside? Do I put burlap over the containers to protect them, or does that encourage mold growth? Also, next year, do I plant tomatoes in the same tomato containers, or do I put some other fruit/veggie in those? Thanks.

Answer 1

Why dont you grow autum/winter vegie's,you should be able to store your empty pots with the soil in the shed,the rain will leech out the nutriants outside,doesnt matter what you put back in the containers,

hope this has helped you out a bit  

Answer 2

Congratulations on your successful container garden.  I do empty out my containers and store the soil in another container.  That is mainly so I can clean out the pots for use next year.  I never heard of using burlap to cover them and would hesitate to where I live because we have a lot of rodents who would use it as nesting material.  A lot of container gardeners will tell you not to reuse soil the next year, but I am so cheap I do it all of the time.  I just add some organic fertilizer and revitalize the soil with compost and I'm ready to use it again.  I keep my cleaned out containers and my soil in my garden shed over winter.  And, a neighbor (who is by the way an organic farmer) told me a couple years ago never to use the same pot two years in a row for tomatoes.  Since I stopped doing it, my tomato plants are healthier than when I used the same pots year after year.