I love to grow a garden, both flower and vegetable, and it’s almost planting season. We’re waiting for the last of the cold weather to pass, it’s usually safe after Mother’s Day. As we do have larger garden beds in our yard, I also want to maximize the space on my patio with some plants in smaller pots. Here are 3 tips to help you have success in your small space gardening!
Small Space Gardening Tips:
1. Which pot is best? You can plant in almost any container as long as it has good drainage. A smaller pot outside your front door will work, but keep in mind that you might need to upgrade to a bigger pot as your plant grows. I like this fun barrel for growing strawberries, perfect for a backyard patio or deck.
2. Make room for water. I like to buy fun decorative pots to plant in, but some aren’t necessarily made for growing things. After drilling a few holes into the bottom of my silver buckets, water now has somewhere to drain. You can place a plastic tray under your pot to catch the drainage water or simply let it drain out onto the patio.
3. Start smaller than you think. Remember that when you plant plants, they will grow and grow and grow. I quickly learned my first year planting tomatoes that 3 plants won’t fit in a small barrel. Throughout the Summer, I ended up pulling 2 of them, and even then I was too late and only had about 4 tomatoes off that plant. So make sure to start small and let it grOW!
I recently received a copy of Grow Great Grub, Organic Food from Small Spaces by Gayla of You Grow Girl. She has great advice on how to grow your own grub even if you have the smallest space to work with. Your windowsill or counter top can be a great place to grow grub, and she helps you choose the best plants for any area.
Are you a small space gardener? How do you make a garden work where you live?
More Small Space Garden Ideas:
How to Container Garden
Container gardening is another great way to garden in a small space! These tips will get you started.
5 Things You Need to Garden with Kids
Gardening with the kids is a great way to spend time together in the great outdoors!
21 DIY Hanging Planters
Sometimes you just want to bring the garden indoors, and these hanging planters will help you do just that!
So glad I found your blog. I too garden, and when I had an apartment I did container gardens, but now that i have a house we have a regular garden. Great ideas and tips!
I live in a third floor apartment with no yard. I tried growing tomatoes hydroponicly, but couldn’t get it to work. Regular old dirt-filled pots work just fine, but Marie is right, the plants need a lot of space! The first year I tried putting a couple of little plants in one pot, but they got too big. This year I’m going to try those upside-down hanging tomatoe planters.
I will definitely check out this book! Last year we planted a great fruit and veggie garden in New Jersey…lettuce, cucumbers, peppers, zuchini, 3 kinds of tomatoes, strawberries, cantalope, and all kinds of herbs in a 4′ X 50′ space…so this a bit larger than what you are talking about! Still could not believe how much produce we had from this small space!! This year we have planted lettuce, spinach, some herbs, strawberries, and brocolli. Happy gardening :-)
Rebecca – I want to try a square foot garden too. It’s amazing how much can fit into a small garden bed!
Me! Me! I’m totally a gardener in a small space! Plus I have the added bonus of living in the desert-Phx! Oh, one more bonus is that I rent my current home and move often. So, doing big elaborate gardens just is not economical for me. However, I still manage to take the best spots of my current homes and grow as much as I can for as long as I can. I just made 2 small (3’X3′) garden boxes, added 2 HUGE barrels for herbs and salad greens, a strawberry barrel, and 3 more huge barrels with citrus trees in them! I have the wood for one more garden box and think I have a spot for it. For me, it’s all about growing things upward, and in the shade of the house! I’m trying out square foot gardening this year.
Rebecca of the R&W Gals
Perfect timing! I’m going to give gardening a shot this year. My husband just made me some raised beds, yahooey! Cross your fingers for me! I’ve got to get my hands on that book.