Balcony veggie gardening

I like gardening, especially veggie gardening!  However, when you live in a condo with a small balcony that receives FULL sun, it can be a challenge to plant things in pots that will actually grow well and produce lots of good eats.  In addition, being a poor and starving student, growing your own veggies is super cheap!  Growing your own food is fairly easy if you know what your balcony conditions are (e.g. does it have full sunlight or shady areas?) and do a little bit of research to find out what plants grow best in your balcony conditions.  It's also highly rewarding when you see your plants flourishing and, oh yeah, you get to EAT IT!  Plus, you can't get produce that's more local than that!

In previous years, I've grown some veggies successfully, and my neighbours have managed to grow some other awesome veggies and fruits.  I thought it would be a neat idea to share with you some of the amazing and easy things that you can grow if you have a small space!

Cherry tomatoes: probably the easiest thing to grow on a balcony.  A little pre-grown cherry tomato plant will only cost a dollar or two, and will take off the second you plant it.  Word to the wise - you probably only need one, maybe two of these plants to be set for tomatoes for the whole summer.  I once bought the 4-pack of little plants, and ended up with about a billion little tomatoes.  It was a good year for salsa-making :)

Herbs: the great thing about planting herbs is that they can live outside in the spring/summer, and be brought inside to keep producing during the fall and winter too!  Depending on the level of sunlight that your balcony/small space receives, the herbs that you grow may be different.  Some herbs prefer high levels of sunlight, while others prefer shadier conditions.  Google-search the herbs that you'd like to grow to see what will grow well for you.  I'm currently growing basil, rosemary and cilantro, though I'd like to add some mint soon too.

Peppers: Bell peppers grow well in pots, but be warned, they take FOREVER to produce anything pick-able.  If you're growing from seeds, plant them in little cups indoors earlier in the spring/late winter, around early March, to get them going.  By the time it gets warm enough to plant them outside, you will have your pre-planted little peppers ready to go.  They will start producing much earlier in the summer than they would if you had waited to plant the seeds outdoors!  I'm currently growing hot pepper plants on my balcony.  For some reason I decided it would be a great idea to plant 4 of them.  Guess who's going to be eating ridiculously spicy food all winter :D?

Strawberries: Yes!  Strawberries can be grown in pots!  I have yet to try it myself (ran out of balcony space this year), but my neighbours have had great success with strawberries, and managed to produce a decent number of berries off of just a couple of plants.



Soon my pretties...

Zucchini: I would never have thought it possible, but zucchini can be planted in pots. In fact, I have a big ol' pot of zucchini sitting on my balcony right now :) These plants grow BIG, so make sure that you have space for them. Also watch for the variety that you pick - there are some zucchini that grow upward and can grow along a trellis/cage (like tomatoes), and others that grow outward like squash, taking over your whole balcony. The type that I planted stated "pot planting" on the baggie, so I'm really hoping that this means that it will grow in a cage instead of taking over everything. Guess I'll find out soon. So far it appears to have an upward motion, and has already started to sprout little flowers and zucchini buds.

Peas and beans: Great for pots! To grow your peas and beans, you need to sprout them first. Wrap a paper towel inside of a cup and put enough water in that the paper towel becomes damp, but not soaked. Put your bean/pea seed in between the paper towel and the cup. In a couple of days, you'll see your seed sprouting! Bean sprouts are also edible (e.g. mung beans), so you can definitely use this technique to just start munching away. But if you want more food, plant 'em! Once your beans/peas get to be a couple of inches tall, you'll want to attach them to a twining surface - e.g. a trellis, or even just a couple of poles and string.

Potatoes: Also inspired by a friend.  How can this be, I hear you ask, since potatoes need really deep soil??  My friend is a genius.  He had an old green bin (the one that you put out at the road) that had a broken handle, and thus couldn't be used for garbage collection anymore.  He cleaned and sanitized it out, drilled holes around the bottom for drainage, filled it up with dirt, and planted potatoes in it.  WHAT!??!  How amazing of an idea is this!!!!!  His potatoes are now growing like crazy, and will soon be ready for plucking.

Other awesome veggies that can be grown in plant pots: (I just don't know enough about planting them - yet): salad greens, e.g. arugula or spinach, kale, onions (regular or green onions), garlic, radishes, broccoli, and way, WAY more!

Check out your local gardening centre to see what veggies are available for planting (either pre-planted or seeds), and ask about planting on balconies vs. gardens.  Keep in mind that on balconies, generally you need plants that don't require very deep roots (unless you're a genius potato planter, as described earlier :P) and don't require lots of space to spread out (such as squash or pumpkins). 

Happy planting!