If you have small space but want to reap the benefits of gardening, apartment gardening is for you. Even the smallest room, balcony, or window sill can be transformed into a thriving urban oasis with a little imagination and planning.
Still, trying to figure out where to begin? Don’t be concerned; we’ve got you covered. Continue reading for our top tips on getting started with apartment gardening immediately.
Table of Contents
Suggestions for Apartment Gardening
Apartment gardening is a popular method for people who live in cities and do not have a lot of space for a traditional garden. These gardens can be indoors or outdoors, as simple or as complex as the gardener desires.
Herbs, vegetables, and flowers are common apartment garden plants. Apartment gardeners frequently grow their plants in containers, which allows them to make the best use of limited space.
1. Make use of raised beds
Forget about growing plants in long, parallel rows in a single file. Using raised beds and square-foot gardening, you can grow up to ten times the amount of produce in the same space.
Raised garden beds keep outside weeds out of your garden soil, prevent water runoff and soil compaction, and keep slugs, snails, and other garden pests at bay. Garden boxes also allow you to focus your energy in a small area, allowing you to work, water, weed, and fertilize as efficiently as possible. Season-extension devices such as cold frames, cloches, row covers, and plastic tunnels can help you make the most of the growing season.
2. Continue to Plant Seedlings
Succession planting ensures that the garden remains productive. Have seedlings ready to transplant whenever one crop is harvested. Use quick-maturing vegetables like radishes or salad greens to fit multiple crops into one season and spread the harvest.
3. Interplant (Intercrop)
Planting small crops in between larger ones is known as “interplanting” or “intercropping.” The small, fast-growing crops will be ready before the larger ones require extra space. If you have a small space, this allows you to use it more efficiently and for a longer period of time.
Plants should be “interplanted” so their leaves will touch when they mature, shading the ground between them. This will keep weeds at bay while preserving moisture, reducing the need to mulch and weed.
Harvest the early-maturing plants as they crowd out their neighbors, leaving room for the others to develop. Plant lettuce around longer-season vegetables like broccoli, peppers, or tomatoes, for example.
4. Plant Companions, Not Competitors
Some intercropping partners thrive when their roots are at different depths in the soil. Combining shallow-rooted vegetables, such as bush beans, with deeply-rooted beets maximizes space while minimizing root competition. Planting heavy feeders like cabbage or cucumbers alongside light feeders like carrots or beans reduces competition for soil nutrients. Companion plants with different demands complement each other, such as the Three Sisters: corn, beans, and squash make excellent intercropping partners. More recommended pairings can be found in our vegetable companion planting chart.
5. Grow Up, Not Out
Arrange your garden plot so the fence, trellis, or wall is on the north side. You can avoid shading the smaller plants by planting the tallest plants there. Vining plants take up valuable space in a small garden if allowed to sprawl, encouraging them to grow.
1. Cucumbers will eagerly climb a nylon net fence, which has the added benefit of making the dangling fruits grow straighter and easier to pick.
2. Tomatoes produce more fruit and ripen earlier when grown on a trellis or in a wire cage off the ground.
3. Peas and pole beans reaching for the sky naturally and will cover a wire fence or twine around a tripod of poles.
Some heavier plants, such as cantaloupes, watermelons, and winter squashes, may require assistance in climbing, so tie their vines to the structure to get them started. Slings keep the fruit from tearing off the vine too soon.
6. Plan Your Garden
A successful vegetable garden requires good soil, adequate sunlight, and adequate drainage, but planning the layout of your garden should not be a last-minute thought. Every garden—and every gardener—is unique, so design a garden that fits your space and needs.
A 100-square-foot (10×10-foot) garden, for example, can easily produce a wide variety of vegetables. It is divided into four beds by two narrow paths that are easy to reach and tend to. (A square equals one square foot.)
Read More
Here Are Some of the Cool Ideas to Get You Started
Below are some of the cool ideas to get you started:
1. Shoe Organizer
Investing in or recycling a canvas shoe organizer is a low-cost and unique way to garden in a small space.
A few strips of wood can be hung and kept off the wall. This type of planter is also ideal for growing herbs.
2. Salad Container
If you’re looking for a unique way to plant lettuce, kale, spinach, or other greens, consider making your own salad box.
Raised beds on table legs or platforms work well for this type of planter and, even better, require less bending over to tend to your plants.
You can make your own simple salad box by upcycling an old desk and hollowing it out or by removing the drawers from a dresser. Redwood planter boxes with a few 1 x 4s are another good option.
Hammer, nail and glue these items together, and you’re ready to go.
3. Gutter
Gardens are becoming increasingly popular in small gardening spaces. This brilliant solution involves connecting gutters to walls in a sunny area, so they are off the ground and away from bugs, animals, and a foundation that can become too wet at times.
4. Rain Boot Planter
Using old rain boots as planters is another inexpensive and whimsical way to add some style to any outdoor space or even wider window ledges. (And when you’re ready to retire the old ones, read our guide to the best gardening shoes to find your next pair!)
They can be hung from walls or fences or placed on top of a table or the ground. This particular planter is a fun activity to try with your children.
5. Coffee and Soup Cans
Another simple idea for making the most of small spaces is coffee and soup can gardening. Both are common household items that you most likely already have.
They can be placed on the ground, window ledges, or tables, or even hung from ceilings, rafters, roofs, walls, fences, trees, and poles if they are painted to add a bit of charm and then planted with your favorite flowers or herbs.
Conclusion
Last but not least, remember that gardening should be enjoyable! So take your time, try new things, and most importantly, enjoy watching your urban oasis grow.
Even if everything doesn’t go exactly as planned (and let’s be honest, it rarely does), embrace the flaws and enjoy the process anyway…
What are the chances? You might find yourself as a plant parent before you realize it. We hope these suggestions have inspired you to try apartment gardening!
FAQs
Q1. What vegetables should never be grown together?
Other plants that are commonly thought to be incompatible with one another include the following:
1. Where asparagus grows, plant mint, and onions.
2. Pole beans and mustard are grown near beets.
3. Carrots and anise are neighbors.
4. Close to potato hills, plant cucumber, pumpkin, radish, sunflower, squash, or tomatoes.
Q2. How do you make a lovely garden in a small space?
8 Ideas for Creating Beautiful Gardens in Small Spaces
1. Flowers or flowering plants can be added.
2. Weeds must be controlled.
3. Plants should be grouped according to a theme.
4. Include some garden art.
5. Use eye-catching pots or feature containers.
6. Use multi-purpose edible herbs and flowers.
7. Create harmony and diversity.
8. Select a feature.