What to Grow in a Small Garden

Do you long for a garden but don't have the space for one? Is your yard too small, or do you live in an apartment and only have a patio or balcony? I know that some of you are still wishing to move to a homestead with more land, and that others of you are homesteading where you are, whether it's a suburban home or an urban apartment.

You can still have a small garden. And while many people think that August means the end of gardening season, it's not too late to plant a fall garden in most areas. Or start planning now, gather your pots and containers, and get growing early next spring.

So let's say that you have a small patio or balcony off your apartment or condo. You'll need to use containers, of course. The size and shape of your containers will depend on the kinds of plants you want to grow.

Source: morguefile.com

Root crops such as beets, carrots, radishes, onions and garlic do well in wide pots that are at least twelve inches deep. The plant part above the ground is usually a bit sparse, so you'll need to space the plants according to what's growing underground. Young beets are more tender than large, more mature beets, by the way, so you can squeeze a few more plants in the container a little more closely than recommended. There are several varieties of small carrots, and radishes are small just because they're radishes.

Greens such as lettuce and spinach are excellent candidates for container growing. You might choose a packet of mixed gourmet lettuce varieties for delicious salads. Cut your lettuce and spinach leaves as you need them, leaving the rest of the plant to continue growing.


Medium-sized fruiting plants such as peppers, eggplant, beans and peas require larger containers, but the plants aren't oversized. Choose bush beans instead of pole beans. You might need to stake these plants.

There are several varieties of small tomato plants. You won't be able to grow a dinner plate-sized beefsteak, but salad tomatoes are a definite possibility. You'll probably need to stake these plants too, or use tomato cages.

You can also grow small melons and cucumbers. These will need a trellis of some sort, which you might be able to lean up against a wall or balcony railing.

Zucchini can be grown in a wide container. The plants get large but they don't spread very much.

Some plants are even multi-purpose. You can eat beet greens in salads or put them in smoothies. The greens from young onions can be snipped like chives, or you can eat the young plants as green onions.

Herbs are another great candidate for container-growing. Chances are you can grow your favorite herbs on your patio or even a windowsill. Many herb plants have beautiful flowers too, which is a bonus.

Kitty litter buckets make good plant containers; ask your cat-owning friends to save their empties for you. Check out farm stores such as Tractor Supply and farm-and-fleet type stores for large black rubber feed bowls or small water troughs to use as containers. Five-gallon buckets are a staple for container gardens. Be sure to drill holes in the bottom of all containers for drainage; most plants don't like having wet roots.

Do be considerate of neighbors when you water your container garden. Water dripping from an overhead balcony might not make you a favorite neighbor.

Enjoy the produce from your small garden and the "fruits" of your labor.

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My hope is to inspire you, and to encourage your homesteading plans and your dreams of a simple, self-reliant, God-dependent life. You can follow me at:
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