Sorry I keep asking questions. I had a pretty great garden last year, and this year I'm struggling a lot (beginner's luck?), so I'm having a lot of questions.

Last year I grew a tomato plant in a "raised bed" on my patio (a converted dresser, about 4 ft long, 3 ft wide, and 2 ft deep). It is on the patio, so soil depth is just that--2 ft (I'm estimating, I did not actually measure). Anyway, the tomato did great. I planted it on its side, so it had tons of room, and it got huge--about 4 feet tall, with great production (it was a sun gold).

Anyway, it was the first time I used the bed, so everything was all fresh. I did about 2/3 miracle gro garden soil, and 1/3 topsoil for filler. This year, I threw in another 2cu-ft bag of garden soil (this time another brand) and mixed that all in, and now I am growing summer squash in it. But I am wondering about how fertile the soil will be. I understand that both squash and tomatoes are heavy feeders. What I have on hand is miracle gro for tomatoes/veggies, the kind that you dissolve in water, so it's basically a liquid plant food. It's all I have, and I am basically broke, so I can't go out and buy good stuff (I have read liquid fertilizer is not the most favorable food source for plants).

I would consider these plants to be container plants, since they are on the patio and not on top of dirt, so their root growth is limited.

So, how often when you fertilize the plants, and when should I not fertilize them? I've read that feeding them with this type of food encourages foliage growth, but doesn't really encourage fruit. But the plants are young. Is it okay to liquid feed them at first, but then pull back on it later? They are still new, they have one true leaf.

Included is an early season picture of the dresser. Foot locker is there as a size reference. The "fence" is to deter my 3 year old, but when the squash gets too big, I will probably cut the twine to make room for them to spread out. (Patio must also be rearranged as they grow!)

Thanks, everyone, for helping out this novice!