Unfortunately I haven't really received an answer to my question. I plan to space them how far apart each plant should be spaced. OK. I would prefer to use a window box, so however many gallons the thing has to be to plant 4 green bean plants without overcrowding them, please specify the dimensions of the window box and what size it has to be in gallons. 6" deep, 6" long and 6" wide. I assume since I'll be planting 4 bush green bean plants and this is how many I want in a container without overcrowding them after I thin them, that I should plant double the amount of seeds with the number of plants I plan to grow since I'll be thinning them out to the strongest plants later? First, the idea of thinning to leave just the strongest plants is silly. What criteria determines which plant is strongest? Sometimes the little weaklings go on to do impressive things once they reach their stride, and the rapid growers peter out and become weak, but I digress. If you will only be planting 4 bush bean plants it isn't really worth your time. You will, at best, get 1-2 light side meals from that amount. Bush beans are usually planted with 3-6" spacing. Root system crowding/competition is pretty much never a limiting factor for them, instead sunlight exposure is. If you plant them too densely the ones in the middle shaded by the sunny side ones become the primary limiting factor. In a container you have the luxury of rotating it for sun exposure so you can plant a little more densely than in the ground. In a trough style container you can go even more dense since the mass of leaves is only as wide and the narrow container. If it were me and I was using a container 30" long by 6" wide by 6" deep I would place 20 bush bean plants into that space. That's 3" per plant. I would also fertilize with a 3:1:2 ratio fertilizer such as Miracle Grow 24-8-16. Don't count on the myth of beans/legumes using atmospheric nitrogen when growing in containers. Heck, half the time you can't even count on it when growing in the ground. With a trough shaped container this amounts to 2 rows of beans and I would rotate the container every day or every other day to get both sides adequate light.

The weather might be nice, but the soil temperature is still cool. Both beans & okra need warm soil to germinate... my guess is that it is still too cool for them. Do you know the recommended planting dates for beans & okra, for your area? You might want to contact your state's Master Gardeners for advice, I've attached a link below. You can also locate the Cooperative Extension for your county by clicking on the map here Here is a link that might be useful: Pennsylvania Master Gardeners

**Do you put a piece of wood/bamboo across the bottom...?** No, I gave up on twine and now use Trellinet/Hortonova from Johnny's. It has six-inch holes, so hands fit easily through when harvesting. 1. Cut a piece of netting to size. 2. Weave the top pole through the netting. 3. Pull the netting taut and fasten it with cable ties to the side poles. No need for a bottom pole. In the fall/winter after the vines have dried, they are easily removed from the netting. The netting is left up year-round and reused season after season. Since cable ties deteriorate/get brittle and need replacement every year, I remove them when I do soil prep for the next season. It's easier to work the soil if the netting is out-of-the-way, that is, detached from the side poles so it can be held out of the way (with a clothes pin) while you work. Don't remove the netting from the top pole (too much work getting it reinstalled.)

Liquidambar styraciflua 'Variegata' grows at a slower rate then the green-leafed form of the tree. What is the size of the tree you are starting with, stuartlawrence? 25 gal. isn't a huge container when talking about trees, but it would be ok for a while if your plant is smaller to begin with, especially with the slower growth rate. As the roots fill in, you can expect to have more maintenance keeping the plant healthy, protecting from extreme weather, and providing sufficient irrigation. The higher maintenance would also apply if you were to employ bonsai techniques; this species is often used as true bonsai subjects, so it is possible to grow them in that way. Does the location support a larger than 25 gal. sized container in case you have the plant long enough to make it necessary? I've frequently grown trees ornamentally in containers, but I bump them up and some of my containers are very large (up to 3' high x 3' diameter ceramic pots) and my climate is different. If this is a cultivar you especially like and want to have in your space, personally, I'd go for it. You would get to enjoy the tree, and if it ever became unmanageable, just rehome and begin again raising another youngster. If it isn't anything special in your eyes, I'd probably look into something that you do like, and would stay smaller in size.