Growing your little vegetable garden when you have a garden is (almost) easy! But when you're a city dweller, how do you do it? Well, we are tricky: every corner, from the window sill to the balcony, can accommodate a little bit of nature, so we take advantage of it and we embark on the creation of our vegetable balcony.
Growing your vegetable garden when you live in town and in an apartment is possible. If you have a green thumb, just a few simple tips grow your fruits and vegetables without taking your head. Then, you have the fresh cherry tomatoes to serve as an aperitif and the aromatic herbs to flavor all your dishes! Take out the hoes and the compost, the gardening lesson to create a vegetable patch on your balcony is now.
Basic advice
To get started, there are a few basic rules to keep in mind to help you ensure optimal development for your vegetable patch.
- Pay attention to the overload : casually, a vegetable garden it weighs. So limit its weight to a hundred kilos for a "dilapidated" balcony, and up to 300 for a high-end one.
- The second point to bear in mind is obviously the Sun ! Plants really need it to grow. The ideal: a South-East or South-West exposure. A full South will satisfy more the southern plants.
- Selection of pots is also a key point in the preparation of your vegetable patch. Plastic and metal are to be avoided, because they prevent the roots from breathing, and could even "cook" your plant because of the sun … Prefer terracotta or stoneware pots (that's what there is more natural!). And do not forget to adapt the size of the pot to the size of the chosen species: necessarily, they need room to grow and develop their roots.
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- Then provide yourself with quality potting soil to meet the needs of your plantations. Choose one special vegetable potting soil because it must be rich in nutrients and remain flexible and airy. It is advisable to mix 50% potting soil and 50% compost.
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- We take some precautions with watering. You never water your vegetable patch when the sun is beating too hard: it is better to give preference to watering in the morning, concentrating well on the soil. Water on the leaves could attract the sun and "grill" them. Be careful however in summer: during hot weather, bring in your containers and planters to protect them from the sun.
It's okay, you respected these 5 key points ? So let's go for the selection of your species!
What to plant in a vegetable patch on my balcony?
Many varieties can be grown on a balcony. Aromatic plants are the easiest to grow and it's always nice to have them on hand. Thyme, tarragon, mint, basil, chives, parsley: enough to give taste and flavor to all your dishes.
Depending on the exposure of your balcony, you can choose more or less suitable species. With a south-facing balcony, we sink into the vegetables of the sun. You have eggplant, tomatoes, peppers, basil or rosemary, but also strawberries. You are going to be jealous!
If you have less sun than the lucky ones facing south, then choose vegetables that grow with little light such as radishes or lettuce to cut.
Focus on our favorite species for a balcony garden
In addition to giving you delicious vegetables and herbs, your vegetable patch can also be beautiful to look at. To give it an aesthetic appearance and make your crops a success, there are certain species that are highly recommended … It's up to you!
Zucchini
The starlet of large vegetable gardens can also be grown on a small end of the terrace. Give her something to have fun with: a flexible container, a pad or a guardian and let her run around a bit!
The secret to shaped and blooming zucchini is simple. Place 3 seeds in a small bucket filled with soil and potting soil. Water it regularly (the soil should always be fresh) and above all keep it warm. As soon as the first leaves appear, transplant your plants into a larger container, the bottom of which will have been covered with clay balls. When they reach 8 cm high, thin them out. Be careful, keep a certain distance between each foot. Two months after sowing, you should pick up some fruit.
Tarragon
Make way for tarragon, a rather vivacious aromatic plant used to wake up small dishes, treat words of teeth, dispel hiccups … So in a planter between pretty bouquets of mint and flowers, on the balcony or even a window sill, of course it throws.
With more than 300 varieties, it is especially the French tarragon which is by far the most fragrant and tasty. But despite its origins (large Siberian steppes), tarragon dreads the cold and does not appreciate too wet soils. Now let's move on to its health secrets: prune your tarragon to relaunch its growth, and above all don't forget the small cuttings as soon as the good weather returns to multiply your plants. Last thing: when planting, think of the space you have. Tarragon grows like quackgrass …
Purple beans with oars
Climbing beans in bloom as a breeze view, it's quite practical: sunbathing away from the eyes of the neighbors.
Be methodical, first fill small pots with soil and potting soil. Take advantage of keeping them between 16 and 18 ° (if necessary improvise a greenhouse with a glass bell) during germination to install teepees in your planters. Transplant your plants into them. Water the soil regularly. 10 days later, work the soil lightly to aerate it and remove the weeds. Count 2 to 3 months after sowing before you can proceed to harvest. Notable advantage, as the velvet bean is climbing you will not have to bend down to pick them up. Sow the beans after the frosts and taste them in July.
Elongated cherry tomatoes
In a small pot, place 2 cm of clay balls to facilitate drainage and prevent the roots from rotting, add potting soil, a few seeds in the middle, again potting soil and water. It is in the first weeks that the seedling needs light and heat (20 °). From April, when there is no longer any risk of frost, put it in a planter, then head the plant on the 2nd leaf after the 5th bouquet of flowers. But to taste these Aligote tomatoes, you will have to be patient and wait 3 to 4 months. When the plant has reached its maximum height, get rid of the greedy, small sterile twigs located between the stem and the leaf.
Lettuces to cut
You don't have to be an outstanding gardener to grow salads. By sowing them in February you should pick them in July. Be aware, however, that some varieties are harvested all year round.
Place your seeds (3 cm apart) in a 20 cm high container lined with light soil, a little water and warmth (1/2 day of sun). Keep the soil always cool and clear them up. Add a little potting soil once a month. In less than a month you should harvest a few leaves!
Pesto basil
Surprise your neighbors and friends by planting this bouquet with basil and pistou flavors in a pretty classic or colorful cylindrical pot. A completely new composition.
Prepare your seedlings in very small pots, by putting some seeds covered with a little soil. Like other basilisks, this variety has very specific needs, namely light, water and heat. Keep your shoots well away from the cold, you will take them out and plant them alone or near your tomatoes (it keeps insects away) in May. Harvest the leaves regularly at the bottom of the stem so that the plant branches out better. Lighten the basil regularly so that it retains its ball shape and cut a few leaves as desired. Do not forget to freeze branches to season your small winter dishes.
Small peppers
Like its cousin the pepper, the chili likes heat. The idea is to sow them during the winter in a mixture of soil and compost and wait for the sunny days (May) to potty them and make them take the air. Do not forget to prick a tutor so that they stand straight. Question maintenance, these small trees love sunbathing (the ideal remains that they are exposed full South) and ask to be hydrated every 2 days, from June to October. Always cut the vegetables with the peduncle, it is better for their conservation.
The radishes
We do not think about it enough but round radishes not only grow quickly but they are also delightful in their "small" pots.
Sow your round radish seeds and leave 2-3 cm between each, all in a small planter full of light soil, a little sandy. Tamp the soil and water it in fine rain. To facilitate their growth, do not forget to thin them you will see in less than a month, they will be ready to eat!
Note: radishes that lack water can be felt … especially by their spicy taste. After the Holy Ice cream, sow your radishes, you will harvest them in spring.
Discover in pictures the most beautiful balconies and our favorite terraces to inspire you!
Also read:
6 tips for maintaining your cacti
How to plant and care for tomatoes?