Popular Questions
+− Can I grow tomatoes in it? (What about other high-stakers like beans and peas?)
Yep, you sure can. If you scroll through all of our voluminous Facebook and Instagram posts, you will come across lots of pics of our customers growing tomatoes successfully. For smaller varieties, like Romas and Cherries, we don’t even stake them. Just let ‘em go wild and push out against your canopy till it’s bursting. Most of these smaller fruits don’t drop to the soil anyway. For your larger varieties, it’s best to get dwarf plants. You can stake them as high as the canopy. Otherwise, there is a simple and effective way to snake your tommies, beans or peas around the canopy. Just train the veggies to the stakes that you have going up, across, down, diagonally – you tell them where to go and make the most of your space!
+− What can I grow in my pod?
You can grow just about anything in the pods – definitely all your leafy salad greens and most herbs are easily contained (and eaten down) within the pod. We’re great believers in packing the hell out of them. Silverbeet, spinach, parsley, chard, lettuce etc. are great for continual harvest.
Most of your rooty veggies can be grown as your pod has a full foot of soil for them to grow in.
Winter crop brassicas such as cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, kale etc are all good to go. Shrubs and fruit trees, however, are clearly a no go.
Please scroll through the hundreds of pics on our Facebook and Instagram to see all our fellow podders out there growing all sorts of wonderful things in them.
Lastly, we recommend the website and app called GardenAte. It’s a free Aussie resource advising what, when and how to plant based on your climate zone.
+− I have grubs in my pod! I thought you said these pods were pest-free…
Usually, this means you have brought the eggs and/or grubs in with your seedlings from the garden centre. This is not uncommon and can take time to manifest within the pod, especially if the pests are only at the egg stage. Most nurseries do not protect their plants like our canopies do.
If it’s curl grubs, these are brought in via your soil. They will mow down your seedlings like a chainsaw and also eat and destroy roots. Either give your soil a good raking through to clean them out, or get new soil.
The most common green grub is the notorious and ubiquitous white butterfly. Most new podders are indeed flummoxed, because you have already rationalised that it’s impossible for the butterfly to squeeze through the canopy. How did they get in there, you ask?! Well their eggs are deposited as tiny single sporadic eggs, so they’re not as easy to see as bigger eggs or batched eggs. You need to look hard. They are the size of a pin head, yellow and cylinder shaped. They are also often on the underside of leaves, to make it even trickier!
Always check your seedlings and rub off any eggs and/or their green grubs before transplanting to your pod. (Their favourite dish is kale and the other brassicas like broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower.)
+− Should I be leaving the canopy open at times?
No! Leave it down all the time…apart from when you are working with the plants of course.
The protective mesh has the lowest shade rate we could find in commercial grade crop cover (only 17 %). In general, veggies need as much sunlight as possible to grow well. At least 4 hours of direct sunlight is recommended for most veggies and herbs. Having said that, the 17% shade provided by our mesh does help against those real scorcher days.
The canopy is permeable so it breathes and allows airflow for plant respiration. In other words, it doesn’t cook and kill your plants on hot days, like many non-permeable greenhouse plastic covers out there. So, it’s fine to keep the canopy down all day. Likewise, the permeability allows rain to go through, so no need to open for watering during those periods.
Apart from creating a perfect micro-climate for plant growth, the main point of the cover is to keep pests at bay. It clearly therefore needs to be down to achieve this.
+− What sunlight should my Vegepod be in?
The best choices for a vegepod that is only getting sun for part of the day is to grow crops where the leaves are the harvested part of the plant. Plants like spinach, silver beet, lettuce, rocket and herbs such as mint, basil, thyme and oregano. Avoid crops such as tomatoes, beans and eggplants that rely on flowering and fruiting to produce because the reduced sunlight hours will reduce the amount of flowers and therefore fruits that are produced. On the flip side of the coin, lower light levels tend to result in extra foliage to try and catch the available light and hence you will get a reasonable harvest of leaves.
+− What if I don’t have a standard garden tap near my Vegepod? Does it matter?
No! Firstly, the mist spray is merely an additional option for watering. Rain and manual watering is most common. But, if you really don’t want to manually water and you want to use the misters you can look for an adapter to attach your hose to a tap in your house.
+− What should I do with my Vegepod in the winter? (snow or below)
Is it okay to leave my Vegepod outside year round?
Yes, just remove or collapse the cover and store inside. We do offer a winter cover which can extend the growing season during the beginning of the lower temperatures.
The winter cover gives some protection against frost and light snowfall. However we strongly urge you to remove and store the cover away before your first heavy snowfall (more than 1 foot of snow may cause the cover to collapse).
Should they be emptied before freeze up to prevent cracking?
The pod itself can be left out in winter – the cover should be taken off and stored away in the garage (can be collapsed if needed for space).
The Pod can be frozen solid with soil and water inside and be ready for planting when the weather warms.
+− Do you need to put new soil in every year?
No you can simply turn the soil over and add some fertilizer whenever you do a crop change – the same soil can be used for 3-4 years.
Some Vegepod owners recycle the water to keep the nutrients from the soil by placing buckets under the drain holes and reusing that water when watering the Vegepod.
+− Can you grow garlic/onions/bulbs in a Vegepod?
Sure can! Check out this link for a video on the topic
+− What is the best way to add worms to my Vegepod?
Check out this video here of Angus Stewart's DIY Vegepod worm farm.
+− Please explain the difference between the regular mesh canopy included in the kit vs the optional hothouse and shade covers?
Check out our video explaining the key features and benefits of the Vegepod Covers here.
+− How do I direct or harvest water from overflow holes?
We'll show you how to best capture and redirect the water from overflow holes, with some ideas on how to reuse and keep growing! Check out our video here.
+− Does the type of soil really matter?
Yes, It sure does! It is absolutely crucial for great growing. Check out the results of our controlled experiment and soil tips here.
+− Can I clean my Vegepod Canopy Mesh?
Yes you can! check out our tips for success here
+− Do I have to pack away my Vegepod in seriously cold climates where it snows and freezes?
Podders in snowy places have always told us how bringing everything inside each winter is a right pain in the butt. They thought the Vegepod’s easy disassembly was winner compared to other beds, not realising you don’t have to bring them at all - an even bigger winner!!! Sure, break down and pack away your canopy, but keep the pod and soil outside as is ❄️
The tapered shape of the bases means any water in the wicking reservoirs also don’t crack the bases. Ice and frozen soil ingenuously just move up and out without splitting walls.
See pic here from podder M. Bead in Ontario Canada where they report “typical winter temperatures are between -15 and –20c, with plenty of days at -32c. Typically 24 inches of ice on the lake and LOTS of snow. Happy to report all is good. Thanks Vegepod!”
+− Where are Vegepods made?
“We used to make our pods in Western Sydney but it became unviable due to the consumers’ demands on price. So, although a couple of the parts are still sourced in Australia, we basically now manufacture and package in China.
It’s an interesting dilemma as we have found over the years that the people who are vexed by offshore production are usually the very same people who rail against the much higher prices of a local option!
We are proudly a family owned, Australian based, Australian serviced and Australian operated company.”
+− How do I relocate a pod full of soil?
Check out how we recommend to move your Vegepod here!
+− Can rats get into my Vegepod?
Just about the only larger pest that can chew through the mesh is the tenacious rat. Possums, raccoons, squirrels etc are all thwarted despite their gnarly teeth and claws.
BUT NOTE! rats can only do this if the pod is either placed directly on the ground without our stands, or located next to another structure of some sort even when on our stands.
We have watched videos and can confirm that the rats CANNOT climb the stand or trolleys and make it up to the top level. The only way they can then get to your pod Is by jumping on to canopy from an adjacent fence or hedge, or dropping from a tree branch for example. If the pod on a stand is at least one foot away from any such structures you will solve the problem without need for rat traps or indiscriminate poisons.
Ensure they are on one of our metals stand and in a clearance, and you are rat free!
The ‘telltail’ evidence of a rat is a rather smallish and relatively symmetrical and horizontally squished oval hole. The rat only chews it barely wide enough so it can then squeeze its body through time and again. One can even notice The edges of the hole be rolled smoothly back somewhat as it repetitively squeezes itself In and out of the hole. This is an example pic.
+− What are the main things to consider when starting out?
Our “Top 5” tips to guarantee growing success are easy to remember …... (and not just relevant to vegepods)
Sun, sun and sun! Get at least 6 hours direct sun for veg (but you can get away with 4 for some leafy greens and herbs)
Soils ain’t soils! Success is all about growing in the best soil you can get. Don’t scrimp just to save a few bucks! The soil is what your plants feed from, what nurtures them, it’s their home! Get the bagged premium / professional-grade potting mix. You can then refeed and rejuvenate over time with a good seaweed+fert combo liquid (we will promote our new Vegeboost soon!) from time to time, or even just some quality bagged cow manure.
Choose your edible plants. A little ditty I made up (sing in Dr Seuss manner) to easily remember is:-
“One for Yum, One for Done and One for just a bit of Fun”.
One for Yum = Choose one you actually love to eat a lot yourself (eg popular heroes are often tomatoes, strawberries, salad greens) - don’t end up with just a bunch of things that sound cool but you barely use!
One for Done = Choose a quick win. One that is easily grown and eaten within say 2 to 3 weeks (eg baby spinach, lettuce, bok choi, herbs). The happiness and sense of achievement from a quick win will ignite and maintain the gardening stoke.
One for Fun = Pick something that sounds interesting but may actually be challenging or not well known (A saffron? A dragon fruit? A vanilla bean orchid?). If it fails, who cares! Muck around. Research if you can.
Watch the watering - It sounds like a glib response but for any plant typically you should always remember to “Look at your plants!”. They will tell a story. If wilting, give them a water (especially baby seedlings even in wicking beds as the topsoil is still dry). Water more regularly in hotter weather. But conversely don’t overwater. If things become too soaked for too long the soild and plants can drown. Look for mould/fungus (a sign of overwatering or not enough sunlight). Trial and error – learn! The good thing about a Vegepod is that it takes a lot of the watering hassle away! 😊
Location, location! Pending sun, can you guess where your “kitchen garden” should be as close to as possible? Yup, you got it, your kitchen! I have seen so many edible gardens go into disuse and disengagement simply because it was considered too far get to in the dark when prepping for dinner!
+− How do I get worms into my Vegepod?
Time and time again we get asked, ‘Can I put worms directly into my Vegepod?’ Well, the short answer is ‘yes’. You can literally just throw worms into your pod and, most likely after a few weeks, you’ll find worms throughout your soil. The only issue is, worms need decomposing organic matter to munch on. That’s where our friend, the Doctor of Dirt, Angus Stewart, comes in with his expert advice on making your own worm tower for the Vegepod.
What is a worm tower? It’s essentially a scrap station for the worms in your Pod. Not only does it help you dispose of your kitchen scraps but it also makes worms very happy campers. Don’t worry, they won’t eat your fresh veggies too! Worms only munch on the decomposing matter and live within the soil.
But here to explain in detail is our friend, Angus Stewart. Please have a squiz at our quick, 1.5 minute educational video (HERE) from Angus that explains how to make your tower and why friendly worms are one of the best things ever for your soil.
Technical Questions
+− What soil should I use in my Vegepod?
Have a read of our blog post by Angus Stewart on the best growing mix for your Vegepod
+− How much should I water the pod?
Check out our video (here) for ALL you need to know about watering and the Vegepod.
For Mature Plants
It does depend on the weather and how established your plants are. For a start, note the canopy is permeable, so if it’s ever raining, it’s getting watered like any other garden. Also, once your plants are established you don’t have to water them as much. They are being serviced by the water reservoirs below, and the wicking system. I.e.: even when the top soil looks and feels dry, you will notice the plants still thrive. They are drinking from the wetter soil below via the wicking bed. Don’t overwater the Vegepod – the beauty of the wicking system is its water efficiency. It doesn’t need the typical amount of watering that a standard garden would.
As an example, a customer didn’t water their pods last year for the 6 months of autumn / winter, as Sydney had regular coastal rain every couple of weeks and the weather was cool. This continually replenished the reservoirs. The warmer months obviously use more. Even in a Sydney summer though when you go away the established plants will be self-watered and okay for up to 2 to 4 weeks without rain or watering! Every time you get rain or use the misters or manually water the pod, your plants are getting watered and the water leaches down through the soil to replenish the reservoirs .
For Seedlings
Having said all that, when your seedlings are just babies, or the summer days are really cooking, we recommend using the mist spray for at least three minutes per day until the seedlings establish. Once they have decent roots sent below or the super hot days are finished, you’ll no longer need to spray. If in doubt, remember, the plants tell the story. Are they drying or wilting? Give ‘em a water!
+− What about pollination with a pod? Won’t there be problems with the canopy blocking bees?
We have never really had any problems with pollination or fertilisation over the years, and we have grown pretty much everything in the Vegepods. This is due to a few factors:
- So many fruits these days are self-pollinating varieties.
- The bees get all the glory but pollination is not solely performed by the larger pollinators like bees and butterflies. Tiny insect pollinators, such as ants and small beetles, are still active. (We are bee lovers too by the way, we have both native and euro hives at Shedquarters!)
- Pollination also occurs via wind / movement which happens thanks to the permeable canopy.
Also remember that for all the leafy greens, herbs and root vegetables we don’t want or need to go to flower / seed anyway!
The only things we have ever really bothered giving some attention (i.e: some finger poking) are cucumbers and zucchinis just to make sure. However, for such big vine growers, we sometimes take the canopy off once they are bursting against the canopy walls anyway. Once the cover is off the bigger pollinators can have access.
+− What are the pods made of?
The pods are made of excellent quality and food-safe materials, tweaked and enhanced over the years.
For a start, the wicking bed bases and raised walls are all virgin polypropylene (right down to the nuts and bolts!), which is certifiably food-safe plastic. This ensures no leaching of chemicals and maintain organic status for soils, unlike treated timbers or iron beds. Some think it may be better to utilise recycled plastics to help the environment as an added bonus, but unfortunately such plastics have a myriad of unknown plastics in every single batch and could not warrant a food-safe check for every lot. Having said that, polypropylene is recyclable (if indeed someone ever wanted to recycle down the track, but it should just keep going!).
The mesh is commercial grade crop cover as seen on fruit tree farms. The poles are made of galvanised steel to ensure no rust and a powder coating for good measure.
The stands are also all made of gal steel and powder coated.
+− How do fungus gnats appear? How do I control them?
Firstly, note the fungus gnats or sciarid flies are not bred in the water reservoirs below to make their way up into the soil and plants. The larvae are either brought in with your soil or flies are attracted to damp spots with lots of organic matter (which is what is in abundance in most potting mixes, or rotting leaves above the potting mix) if the canopy is left open. The flies will fly in and lay eggs in the top layer of the potting mix. The Vegepod reservoir wells don’t stagnate as they have an overflow hole to allow regular flush outs when there is lots of rain or you can purposely water the pods through from the top.
If you notice them then also STOP watering. The top layer of soil in a Vegepod should generally be dry. You should always place your vegepods in sunny locations that gives as at least 6 hours direct sunlight a day, that is best for veggie growing anyway, and will ensure you don’t get any wet/damp related pests or fungi probs. Dead foliage attracts the gnats so always clean away anything you don’t intend eating.
One solution to rid the gnats altogether is a biological control in the form of a nematode that is introduced to the soil. Apart from using the predatory nematodes (check your local producer for supply), another option is to kill any adult flies that are hanging around above the potting mix. They lay eggs which hatch into the larvae that do the damage. A sticky trap is a good non-toxic way to get the flies. Stopping the flies will stop the larvae that cause the problem.
Growing Tips
+− My cover keeps coming off. What's going on?
Firstly, please refer to our assembly support videos for clear instructions on the link below: https://vegepod.com/assembly-videos/
You must ensure the hinge clips click over the edge of the walls to secure in place. This requires some decent force to click the little lip over the wall panel.
You must also ensure to put at least two of the hinge clips on the front wall and not use all of them on your back wall. This ensures wind does not simply blow the cover up and down.
+− Ants are in the pod. What do I do?
Ants generally like to live in really dry areas so you could try using a wetter soil agent and/or soak the pod continuously for a bit until they bugger off. Google and people will mention various deterrents such as cinnamon, lemon, borax / food grade diatomaceous earth etc. But don’t necessarily malign the ants, they are often helping out or at worst innocuous. They will help pollinate inside the pod whilst the bigger pollinators like bees can’t get in. Have a look to see what they are doing. They may be feeding on nasty pests like scale insects. But if in plague proportion or destroying your plants, then you could try Ant-Rid which usually works well.
+− My mist sprays are not wetting the far corners of my pod top soil. Do we have a problem?
The misters produce a high volume of super fine mist. The mist will cover most of the plants and soil area in your pod, but you are correct, they do not necessarily reach into the corner extremities of the pod. This is not a problem for established plants because what we are basically aiming for is to have all the water leach down through the soil, and replenish the wicking reservoirs at the base. That’s where established plants get the vast majority of their water from. Even if all the top soil was dry, for example, it doesn’t really matter. Technically you could have all the water enter from beneath the soil and the wicking still does the job. We didn’t design it like that, however, as it is indeed natural to have soil dampened from above too. We emulate nature as much as possible.
Having said all of this, if your plants are still tiny seedlings without decent roots to drink from the wells, it is recommended to water by hand the whole lot until they establish.
+− What do I do on the extra hot days? Do I need extra shade cloth? Watering?
If you are getting say a few days of plus 33°C heat in a row, then a bit of shade cloth over the canopy can be a good touch during those periods. You can either drape the cloth over the canopy or peg it to the Vegepod’s poles. Remember, we chose the lowest shade rate in commercial grade crop mesh, to allow as much light in as possible for ideal veggie growing…and to cater for those customers who only get a few hours sun a day. However, on hot days, the cover is only 17% shade, so adding a bit of green shade cloth on those days is recommended.
If your plants are still young seedlings and unestablished this is particularly recommended. Whilst still small seedlings, their roots have yet to take a good hold or grow much towards the lower and wetter regions of the wicking base. Until they get a bit bigger and more established, a good 3 to 5 minutes of daily mist spray or manual watering is also recommended.
+− I have aphids. What to do?
Aphids are about the only pest tiny enough to get through our super fine protective mesh. They are the size of pin-head in green/grey/brown colours and typically infest in large numbers on leaves of the leafy green veggies. There are many “quick-fix” spray suggestions out there (such as organic options of garlic/chilli/milk sprays or the pyrethrum oil spray), but really, we never find those truly effective and besides, who wants to spray the very leaves we are going to east with all that stuff!? The sprays don’t stand up to a good ole bit of elbow grease anyway. Take your time and literally run your fingers over top and and bottom side of every leaf and squish all of those buggers for good. It’s the only sure-fire way to really ensure they are kaput in our view. It’s a good way to spend time with your plants and get to know them, it’s therapy and education! However if your greens are decimated already or you have a timid heart or you just can’t be bothered, then rip out the infested plants and start again. (You can often just wash all the aphids off the pulled out plants out under a running tap and eat them rather than tossing too).
+− Can I use two medium trolleys to make a trolley stand for the large vegepod?
“Vegepod does not recommend nor endorse doing this, but it has been witnessed before and does technically ‘fit’ into place. Note the large vegepod is weighing approximately 450kgs when full of wet soil and full reservoirs, so any such unintended use of such trolleys is at your own risk. Vegepod will not be held responsible. The surface would definitely also need to be absolutely smooth, hard and level like a concrete slab as even a fairly small ridge could place undue pressure on the separated trolleys.”
+− What about adding worm juice?
The benefits of worm juice come in several ways as follows:
It has a very well balanced nutrient content usually depending what your worms have been fed. If they have had the usual diet of things like kitchen scraps and manure these materials have the same balance of nutrients that plants need for optimal growth. Humus which is the end result of the breakdown of organic materials. Humus builds a soil's ability to store more water and nutrients Beneficial microbes from the worm's gut is in the juice.
Storing the juice for more than a week or so will greatly reduce the quantity of beneficial microbes and for that reason we like to use it as fresh as possible. However, your stored juice will still have the full benefits of points 1 and 2. So for that reason it will still be good to use.