[Stepper]

Does anyone have ideas/experience in container gardening? I have a balcony where I would like to try to grow some veggies. I seem to remember seeing photos of cherry tomatoes grown that way. What other types of plants grow well in small places? The balcony is in the sun for most of the day.

[workinman]

i have seen lots of people do this... of course space is limited but the personal care you'll give each plant seems to produce awesome yields.

i like using the containers that have the small 'bowls' built in for catching extra water that works it's way to the bottom of the pot... keeps everything clean and dry for you and keeps to much water from sitting in the bottom of the pot.

[peachy]

I had great experience with herbs...especially chives. Seriously, everytime I went to go cut my crass, I also went to my little patio to cut some chives down. It grows THAT fast.

Cherry tomatoes are great! They're fast and abundant. Make sure you get one of those wire tent thingies as your plant will grow quickly...you want to make sure you have something to help the plant grow and ensure it's supported.

Depending on the size or you container, 1 eggplant/pepper plant will do well, but your yield will be quite small. Zucchinis are awesome, but they sprawl and crawl.

Make sure you take pictures once things start growing! Love seeing a good garden.

[Stepper]

Thanks, Workinman and Peachy--good thoughts! Growing herbs is a good idea. I hadn't thought of peppers at all, but I might just include one because they are such pretty plants. I will definitely take some pictures when I have something to show.

[Stepper]

Got the plants and potted them last night and this morning, so I have managed to keep them alive for 24 hours. I did take a couple of pictures, but they're too large to upload. I'll have to look up how to change the camera settings.

Went with two cherry tomato plants, one strawberry plant, and one each of rosemary, Greek oregano, cilantro, and sage. Also two thyme plants (stuffing seasoning!). These were all recommended for container gardening, but I also decided to experiment with two types of lettuce. I know their natural tendency is to grow into heads too big for this space, but I wonder if I can keep them "trimmed" by regularly harvesting a leaf or two from each plant? I'll let you know how it goes.

[peachy]

Ooooo. The herbs are going to be awesome!! That stuffing sounds good already!! I love cilantro too. Let me know how it works out for you. For some reasons, I can't get it to grow well. Either they're really tiny and skinny plants or they just wither away. Let me know what you're doing to get them to grow!

As for the lettuce, your idea of trimming it regularly is a good one. It should definitely help out.

Sounds like it's going to be a lovely harvest!

[TheQueen31]

I can't garden for the life of me. I have the opposite of a green thumb. I'm just going to try to trim the Wysteria so that it doesnt climb into the neighbours windows, and weed a bit. In three years here, I haven't been able to have a successful garden, so this year I'm not going to bother.

I know it's a time issue - but with one Autistic child and one with ADHD, I'm pretty much maxed out for time.

[Stepper]

Update: I haven't killed anything yet, but the cilantro isn't looking too good. I suspect it likes a really wet environment, but the soil seems to dry out quite a bit over the course of the day. The weather has turned a lot more humid in the past week, so maybe that will help.

The red leaf lettuce also tends to wilt a bit during the day, but comes back after being watered. The buttercrunch lettuce holds up a lot better.

[peachy]

THat's awesome!!! Sorry to hear about the cilantro though. I have no idea what works for them. They seem finicky.

The humidity must be very hard on your plants. =(