Post by Honeylioness on Nov 21, 2008 14:28:42 GMT -5
22 April 2008
I have been "gardening" on balconies and porches for YEARS....because either I was renting, or now in my condo, I do not have all that much ground level space. Here are just a few of my thoughts/observations:
* Almost anything can be grown in containers if you have the right size and soil.
* For my tomatoes I turn the soil over in the same long, deep boxes I use each year and mix in new manure at LEAST two-three weeks before planting the seedlings. Tomatoes are heavy, heavy feeders and need the extra nutrients to thrive I have found. If you do this too close to planting, the manure is so "hot" chemically it will literally fry your plants to death.
* Even if you buy your tomato plants - be sure to plant them DEEP. Do not be afraid to take a small plant and sink half it's height into the soil. Each small "hair" on a tomato plant is able to form a root. Especially in containers where they are more prone to wind - the deeper the root system, the steadier the plant I find.
* Planting garlic cloves in amongst the tomatoes seems to help cut down on some insects.
* I had to give up growing lettuce in my container garden - the kitties viewed it as an all you could eat salad buffet and would munch to the ground any new leaves or shoots that came up.
* For catnip - I grow mine in hanging baskets. First because it gives the plants a fighting chance before the neighborhood felines can attack it. And secondly because as another poster mentioned - all mint family plants are incredibly aggressive and invasive - and the pot keep them contained.
* For "young but smart" *chuckling* I think it is so sweet of you thinking neither cat will suddenly develop the ability or want to get on your counters once you have a catnip plant on your windowsill. Best of luck with that plan . One of my cats could not care less about it, the one of them will be in ecstasy from just the smell on my shoes if I happen to step on a leaf !!
I do not often get that much more than I can eat in a season - except for the herbs which I have taken over part of my "common" area in front of the condo and grow amongst the shrubs - sort of like guerrilla gardening. Those I do dry and use the rest of the year. However I do live very close to a pick your own farm and each year I pick between 40-60 pounds of assorted berries (blueberries, strawberries and raspberries) along with apples and pumpkins that I put up, can, freeze, etc. And a lot of it is for Christmas gifts, birthday gifts etc. One year I had so much I donated it to my church's emergency food pantry.
I know that after the initial investment of containers, yearly supply of fertilizer etc - that I am ahead financially - especially with the herbs (garlic, chives, parsley, basil, sage, mints, medicinals) as they are ridiculously expensive when you check out the per pound cost on the shelf stickers at the store. And they dry easily and keep well all year.
And I must confess - there is something so incredibly satisfying, and almost overly sensuous, for me at least, about eating a sun warmed whole tomato right off the vine - the taste is like nothing else.
I have been "gardening" on balconies and porches for YEARS....because either I was renting, or now in my condo, I do not have all that much ground level space. Here are just a few of my thoughts/observations:
* Almost anything can be grown in containers if you have the right size and soil.
* For my tomatoes I turn the soil over in the same long, deep boxes I use each year and mix in new manure at LEAST two-three weeks before planting the seedlings. Tomatoes are heavy, heavy feeders and need the extra nutrients to thrive I have found. If you do this too close to planting, the manure is so "hot" chemically it will literally fry your plants to death.
* Even if you buy your tomato plants - be sure to plant them DEEP. Do not be afraid to take a small plant and sink half it's height into the soil. Each small "hair" on a tomato plant is able to form a root. Especially in containers where they are more prone to wind - the deeper the root system, the steadier the plant I find.
* Planting garlic cloves in amongst the tomatoes seems to help cut down on some insects.
* I had to give up growing lettuce in my container garden - the kitties viewed it as an all you could eat salad buffet and would munch to the ground any new leaves or shoots that came up.
* For catnip - I grow mine in hanging baskets. First because it gives the plants a fighting chance before the neighborhood felines can attack it. And secondly because as another poster mentioned - all mint family plants are incredibly aggressive and invasive - and the pot keep them contained.
* For "young but smart" *chuckling* I think it is so sweet of you thinking neither cat will suddenly develop the ability or want to get on your counters once you have a catnip plant on your windowsill. Best of luck with that plan . One of my cats could not care less about it, the one of them will be in ecstasy from just the smell on my shoes if I happen to step on a leaf !!
I do not often get that much more than I can eat in a season - except for the herbs which I have taken over part of my "common" area in front of the condo and grow amongst the shrubs - sort of like guerrilla gardening. Those I do dry and use the rest of the year. However I do live very close to a pick your own farm and each year I pick between 40-60 pounds of assorted berries (blueberries, strawberries and raspberries) along with apples and pumpkins that I put up, can, freeze, etc. And a lot of it is for Christmas gifts, birthday gifts etc. One year I had so much I donated it to my church's emergency food pantry.
I know that after the initial investment of containers, yearly supply of fertilizer etc - that I am ahead financially - especially with the herbs (garlic, chives, parsley, basil, sage, mints, medicinals) as they are ridiculously expensive when you check out the per pound cost on the shelf stickers at the store. And they dry easily and keep well all year.
And I must confess - there is something so incredibly satisfying, and almost overly sensuous, for me at least, about eating a sun warmed whole tomato right off the vine - the taste is like nothing else.