Home for the Harvest – Step-by-Step Home & Garden

Your outdoor space can be the perfect place for a balcony vegetable garden! Many veggie and culinary herb plants thrive when grown in containers on a balcony. Patio container plants warm up quickly and their containers can be filled with high quality soil (AKA perfect conditions!). Check out the list below for my 5 top picks for edible crops to grow in balcony vegetable gardens. The Best Plants for Your Balcony Vegetable Garden 1. Tomatoes Grown In Containers Yum! Like strawberries, tomatoes love warm soil. They thrive in warm, sunny environments (like a warm, sunny balcony!). Growing a small tomato plant or two on your balcony makes summer SO delicious. Read more here about the tastiest types of tomatoes to grow. You'll need a bigger container for your tomatoes, as they need to develop strong roots to produce a good crop of tomatoes. Most tomato plants will grow to be at least 4' tall, so be sure to put it in a large corner of the patio. A 5-gallon pail is the smallest bucket you'll want to use for tomatoes...and a half-barrel garden works very well! Detailed Guide: How to Grow Tomatoes Even though they do take up a bit of space, growing your own tomatoes in your apartment balcony vegetable garden is well worth it. There truly is nothing tastier than a fresh homegrown tomato! 2. Leafy Salad Greens Grown On The Balcony Leafy greens just might be the most reliable patio veggie crop. You can grow new plants throughout the growing season so you'll always have delicious, fresh produce for your smoothies and salad. They do take up a bit of room, so once you're comfortable growing plants on the balcony it may be worth investing in a proper balcony planter: Mini Farm Box Rolling Patio Planter (Untreated Cedar)VegTrug Aluminum Raised Garden PlanterNatural Cedar Wood Planter Boxes (Various Sizes)Garden Tower Fortunately, greens are quite easy to grow, even if your balcony isn't in the sun all day. Compared to most other veggies, greens don't need as much light to grow. They're also relatively easy to tend and harvest. “Think of containers as problem-solvers. Short on space to work with? No time to maintain an entire garden? Want to grow plants that need special conditions? Containers to the rescue. They offer a manageable way to enjoy all the beauty and benefits of your own personal garden, whether it be on a balcony, patio, rooftop, windowsill, or wall.”Sunset Outdoor Design & Build: Container Gardening: Fresh Ideas for Outdoor Living, by Hank Jenkins & The Editors of Sunset Magazine 3. Strawberries For A Fruity Patio Strawberries do well in containers because they thrive in warm, well-drained soil. The heat from the sun on your patio will warm up the soil in the container and speed up plant growth. While not technically a "veggie", strawberries will be one of the first crops that are ready to eat from your balcony garden. They also look great year round in a windowbox. Here are some more ideas for strawberry growing containers. Some varieties produce fruit in June only, while others produce a second crop in late summer. I keep my strawberries outside all summer, and move the varieties without many runners indoors when the frost hits to enjoy berries all year long. Check out these instructions for growing strawberries in containers. 4. Culinary Herbs For Dining Al Fresco Culinary herbs make wonderful container plants for a little veggie garden on the balcony. Most gardeners who have large backyard gardens tend to grow herbs in containers rather than directly in the soil because some herbs can take over the rest of the garden. It's also really nice to have them right outside the patio door for easy access while cooking. List of Culinary Herbs to Grow Leafy green herbs like basil, sage, thyme, rosemary, oregano, mint, and chives are all lovely balcony garden herbs. If your patio is hot and sunny, these herbs will survive the heat so long as you keep them well watered. Some other leafy greens like cilantro prefer a lower-heat environment. Here are some herbs that can be grown in shady spots. Consider the environmental conditions for your apartment balcony vegetable garden and do a bit of research before picking which herbs to grow. Learn more about growing herbs in containers here :) 5. Peas Peas are one of the hardiest crops that can be grown outdoors in your balcony vegetable garden. When you grow them vertically, they don't take up much space at all. They also look lovely trailing up a balcony trellis! Peas can be grown through a frosty shoulder season and produce edible veggies within several months of planting. We've sprouted peas here in Zone 5 in the first week of October! Pea shoots are also edible, and can be snipped off and added to salads or smoothies. They're fun to grow and lovely to look at. Seeds for organic peas are also easy to find online. Who could want more?! “You can grow just about anything in a container, from plants that stimulate the senses with aroma and texture to abundant edible gardens. With the proper soil, drainage, exposure, and nourishment, your garden will flower and fruit just as it would in the ground.” Sunset Outdoor Design & Build: Container Gardening: Fresh Ideas for Outdoor Living, by Hank Jenkins & The Editors of Sunset Magazine Planning Your Apartment Balcony Vegetable Garden Are you thinking about growing some produce on your balcony this year? I've put together a Garden Planner to help you through the process of planning out your garden. It starts right at the beginning of the planning process and takes you through each necessary step of garden planning.

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