The “Secret Garden” is more than a book or movie to me. It is actually every garden I see. Not having a green thumb myself, I marvel at the wondrousness of it all.

My attempts at gardening are limited to growing cat grass for my girls. It starts out fine, but always ends badly. The new green blades all too quickly turn yellow and droop, leaving the cats disappointed and me frustrated.

Gleason Gray, extension educator on gardening at the University of Maine Cooperative Extension at the Penobscot County office, diagnosed my problem.

“Sounds like not enough light and overcrowding of the seeds,” he said. “The key issues with container gardening” – is that what I was doing? – “are an adequate container and water management.” Plants like uniform watering and moisture control, he added. Irregular watering – saturating the plant and then ignoring it until it becomes a dust bowl – can stunt its growth.

To my surprise, a plethora of vegetables can be grown in pots, including green beans, carrots, Swiss chard, lettuce, cucumbers, bell peppers, mustard greens and, of course, tomatoes, which have one variety that is specifically bred for container gardening. It is very important that your pots be large enough for the plants to flourish.

For seniors who had a garden in the past but now live in an apartment with limited space, or who are on a fixed income and want to try their hand at growing some of their own produce, container gardening may be just the thing.

It’s a bit late in the season, said Gray, but there are still some plants available at nurseries that just need to be transferred to larger containers.

But there are a few things to consider, he added, before turning your patio or deck into a crop-producing garden – for instance, the amount of sunlight the plants need versus how much they will actually get. Also, be sure the vegetable grows upward – even if you have to put a cage around it – instead of sprawling out. Wind is another factor to keep in mind. If the plants are too tall, they could blow over on a particularly windy day.

And then there are the neighbors to think about if you live upstairs. Water could run off, traveling down to their space, causing potential problems. Should this occur, a lovely gift basket of fresh produce may soothe frayed nerves.

When shopping for plants late in the season, look for larger plants, which will be of higher quality, said Gray.

“Be careful of tall plants in small containers because they can be root bound, and if they are, the plant won’t function well,” he said. And remember that container plants must be fed more than ground vegetation.

“A plant in the ground can extend its roots and pick up nutrients that it needs,” he added. “A container plant only has what you give it. There are liquid fertilizers, both organic and chemical, on the market now.”

While fresh, home-grown produce has nutritional benefits, there are other reasons to start a garden, said Gray.

Horticulture therapy is a “big deal,” he said. “Basically it is using plant growing as a method of helping folks.” There can be mental benefits such as a lift in depression, and physical benefits because the person is moving more. The senses are also stimulated due to the plant’s fragrance, its visual appeal and the fact that gardening is a tactile activity.

“It’s also very rewarding to grow plants,” he added, “especially for seniors. It gives them something productive to do. In fact, you could do flowers along with vegetables. One is for beauty and the other is functional, although some vegetables flower beautifully.”

Rewarding, huh? Well, armed with all this new knowledge, I am off to the nursery to get cat grass seeds. Wish me luck.

Carol Higgins is communications director at Eastern Agency on Aging. For information on EAA, call 941-2865 or log on www.eaaa.org.