1. Container Gardening
Consider using containers to grow food- veggies, fruits, and herbs rather than the
usual flowers. Some flowers (like petunias & marigolds) can be interspersed with the contained plants to ward off bugs; this makes allows the container garden to serve a duel purpose of growing food and dressing up a spot of the deck, porch, or yard.- Herb Container Gardens
- Summer Container Gardening , 2 , 3 , 4
- Potato Bag & Plant Varieties Good for Containers
- Laundry Basket Gardens
- No Yard; No Problem
- We've done mixed container gardens for our deck for a couple of years now. This year, we plan to replace the spikes with lemon grass, the geraniums with scented geraniums (citronella), the other flowers with flowering herbs and/or tomatoes.
2. Window Boxes
Install window boxes for spring. summer, fall use. They work well for herbs, lettuces, and and flowers- especially edible ones!
- Year-round Window Box
- Plans to Build Them
- Our window boxes are planters purchased at a home improvements store. We put brackets on the house, under the north-facing windows, and attached the draining trays. The planters snap into the trays and can be detached and stowed in he garage when frost or cold threaten.
3. Hanging Pots and Buckets
Of course, we've all seen hanging pots of flowers available in garden and grocery stores. But, why not grow herbs, etc in them? Also, a newer, radical idea is to grow tomatoes upside-down in a hanging bucket!
- Upside-down Tomatoes , 2 , 3
- Grow Poles
- Products for Growing Hanging Tomatoes, etc
- We found pot hangers at a local discount store. Each year we plant herbs, flowers, and lettuce in clay pots and place them in the "pot hangers"; then, we hang them on our fences for added growing space. This also keeps bunnies OUT of our lettuce!
4. Vertical Space
Use vertical wall space is better for more things than just roses, grapes, ivy, and clematis! It can create growing space for tomatoes, cucumbers, zucchini, small squash, and even small pumpkins. Mother Earth News has addressed this subject several times in their magazine.
- Strawberry Barrel
- Build a "Tower"
- Trellis, Bins, and Tepees
- Freestanding Tower
- Not for the at-Home Gardener, but Isn't This Cool?
- Our tomato trellises hide the walls of our aging garage. One set faces east and the other set faces west. They are constructed from home improvement store, plastic lattices that have been hung on two spike nails; yes, THAT simple. As the tomatoes grow, we tie them up the trellis with zip ties (my sister uses pieces of fabric that she has ripped from worn out t-shirts and jeans). The plants usually grow up and over the gutters!
Many other links and ideas are available online & in printed materials. But hopefully, something here will spark ideas. Small spaces are no excuse! ;-)
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