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Containers

Growing courgettes in pots

The short answer

Yes, if you choose a compact or bush variety and a container at least 45cm wide. A growing bag can take one or even two compact plants. Fill with peat-free soil-based or multi-purpose compost, stand it somewhere warm and sunny, water daily in hot weather, and feed every 10 to 14 days once the first fruits swell.

In the ground a courgette wants about a square metre. In a pot it takes less room, but only if the variety is compact and you keep up with the watering.

Container and variety

  • A container at least 45cm wide, with a compact or bush variety.(RHS)
  • One or two compact plants in a growing bag.(RHS)
  • RHS names ‘Astia’ as a compact variety for large containers.(RHS)
  • Peat-free soil-based or multi-purpose compost.(RHS)

Watering, feeding, position

  • A warm, sunny spot.(RHS)
  • Water daily in hot weather, but try not to wet the leaves, which encourages fungal disease.(RHS)
  • Feed every 10 to 14 days with a high-potash liquid feed once the first fruits start to swell.(RHS)
  • Climbing varieties can be trained up canes or wires,(RHS)

Picking

Pick small and often, at 10 to 12.5cm: when to pick courgettes. In the ground they need about a square metre each: courgette and squash spacing.

Pots and beds, on one plan

Add your pots and beds to Vercro with what is growing in each. It keeps the record, and Today shows the few jobs that matter each morning.

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Where this comes from

The growing advice on this page comes from the published sources below, each linked beside the point it supports. Where two good sources disagree, we show both rather than choosing the convenient one. Reviewed 19 September 2026.