BALCONY GARDENING

Whether you live in a house with a small garden, an apartment, or in a high rise building you don’t have to miss out on the pleasure of growing your own plants, you can still achieve this with balcony gardening. Balcony gardening is very flexible, if you don’t like the look of what you have created, the containers can be moved around to give a different garden design.

There are several things you need to consider when planning your balcony garden:

• Climate conditions
  Take note of how much wind and sun the balcony receives and from which direction as this will affect your choice of plants. If the balcony is shaded then there are still many plants that grow in shady conditions.

• The Plants
  You need to decide what types of plants you want to grow. Balcony gardening is suitable for growing flowers, vegetables or trees and you may like a combination of these. Also consider plant color, height, leaf shape and time of flowering as the balcony will usually be in close proximity to the indoor living area and you will want it to look stunning.

• The Containers
  Many types of containers can be used for balcony gardening. Pots can be made of clay, metal, wood, or plastic but other items which can be used are only limited by your imagination. Experiment with such things as old wheelbarrows, pots and pans, shoes and boots, old tires in fact anything which has adequate drainage. You may need to check your lease or agreement to see if there are any restrictions on the types of containers due to visual, safety and weight concerns. A window box or a  Self-Watering Hanging Basket can give a fantastic flowering display and can also be used for vegetables or herbs.

Preparation
Balcony gardening requires containers that are thoroughly clean. If they have been used before scrub them with a weak solution of bleach and a brush to remove any pests or diseases which may be clinging to the sides.

There must be adequate drainage holes, pots will have these but if you use other containers you may have to drill holes in the base. The holes are there for drainage but you don’t want to lose the soil through them so you should cover them with a layer of broken terra cotta, gravel or a piece of gauze. Place the containers on bricks or pot feet to allow drainage and prevent rotting of containers.

A soil mix can then be added to the pots which should be light, well drained and moisture-retentive. Garden soil is not suitable for balcony gardening as it is too dense and may harbor insects and diseases. Add a slow release fertilizer when planting or use a water soluble fertilizer every fortnight.

Wooden Planter Box

Baby Carriage Planter

Maintenance
Watering is a major consideration when thinking about balcony gardening especially if you are out at work all day. Your plants will need regular watering, maybe twice a day, especially if the weather is hot and windy. The roots of plants in pots dry out much more quickly than those in the ground.

The ideal situation to watering would be to install a tap on the balcony but if this is not possible then you can use self watering pots, like the Riviera Vision Planter, attach a coil hose to the nearest tap or make endless trips with a watering can! Plant saucers will be useful or the excess water may drip down onto the balcony below.

So, however small your outdoor area, you can still enjoy you own flowers and vegetables with balcony gardening.