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Balcony Gardening - Balcony Garden Ideas

Updated on May 13, 2012

Balcony Gardening

Living in an apartment was like a death knell to my love of plants and gardening, but when something is your passion, you tend to work your way around issues. I discovered balcony gardening. I have three balconies, but two have been converted for use in some ways, which just leaves me with 4x6 sq ft of space. I would love to have much more in terms of space, but a challenge forces you to make good use of what you already have. Balcony gardening is the art of making the right choices with regard to the kind of plants you could grow, based on the space and micro-climate that you have in your balcony.

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Balcony Garden Ideas

Selecting your plants

The plants you select should be based, not on your personal preferences alone, they should depend on the sunlight your balcony receives. If your balcony catches the bright, but rather gentle rays of the morning sun, you could get plants that are happy with very little light. You could use plants like peace lilies, pothos or devils ivy, Pilea which is so versatile and come in different varieties. The Pilea moon valley is an attractive plant that is truly worth your time and effort. These could do their turn in your living space as indoor plants too, brightening up your space and making your home more colorful and lively.

If you are lucky and your balcony catches the sun for most part of the day, I suggest that you should boldly venture to get some fancy looking plants. Cactus, succulents or tropical plants like orchids and African violets that could make your balcony a veritable paradise. Monsteras could look divine under the glow of some grow lights. if you decide to shift them indoors for winter, but you need to choose the smaller varieties. I would say be bold, get the perennials, during the winter months you could always shift them indoors. They can grow and thrive inside your home with the help of a couple of grow lights fixtures.

Balcony garden - Less is more

The space you have also decides the kind of plants you have. You cannot have huge shrubs in a small place unless you decide to have just one or two plants... which could be a great option. A healthy looking ficus benjamina could make up for a ten indoor plants. Bonsai’s are a great option when you have little space, but if you are anything like me and want to have a whole botanical garden in your balcony, you need to plan and design your space.

Designing your Balcony Garden - Planters and Containers

You could fix hoops vertically for your pots or hooks to hang your pots, utilizing every bit of space you have. Vertical gardening is becoming quite popular, you may have to spend a decent amount of money to get the fixtures for your plants. There are always ready made option for everything, you could check what suits your space and decide on them. A three layered stand designed to fit neatly, works well for me, I have had the welders come and fix it up for me, as my balcony is semi hexagonal in shape.

The kind of pots you use should also be a matter of concern. Hoops may not allow for pots of different sizes, but when you have a three layered stand, your balcony garden can diversify by the minute. One problem with balcony gardening is that you could easily mess up your living space, so plan for a small folding board to do your potting which you could be folded behind the door when not in use.

Your Little Container Garden

If you have balcony that overlooks some other apartment balcony or bedroom and you need your privacy have some lovely climbers like clematis or morning glory to liven your balcony while providing you the privacy you need. This would look so romantic if you could view your balcony through a glass door from your living room or bedroom.You just have to put your imagination to good use, to have the most splendid garden on your balcony. Little is much, just ensure that you have a good mix of beautiful flowers that will make you home colorful, inviting and pleasant to live in.

Tips for your balcony gardening

Another secret that I think would be worth the sharing is, have more plants than your fixtures can hold. I am saying that in right earnest, this way you can rotate your plants inside your home and if possible, some at the entrance to your house. This may call for a little extra work, you may have to rotate them out into the sun each week or may need to have some grow light fixtures neatly and aesthetically fixed for them.

Here is one more of ideas to make a little a lot more, my kitchen does not have a balcony, or to be fair I used up the space to brighten and extend my kitchen, but when I did that, I also incorporated a small boxed grill from the kitchen window which is now my little herb and orchid garden. Herbs just need small containers. Mint, spearmint, cilantro, rosemary etc., can grow in little boxes, they don’t have huge root systems, and can stay here in tiny containers greening up your view whilst providing you fresh herbs that you could use in your cooking.

I do hope that I have made balcony gardening sound workable for you, and I hope you are now sufficiently motivated to turn your plain looking balcony into a paradise.

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