Growing a balcony vegetable garden doesn’t need a green thumb or crazy amounts of space. A lush vegetable garden is just as accessible to apartment-dwellers as it is to those who live away from the city, though it may not seem so. If you’re considering starting a balcony vegetable garden, we’ve put together a list of veggies you can easily grow and nurture in cookie-cutter pots.

Balcony Vegetable Garden Addition #1: Tomatoes

balcony vegetable garden-tomato plants
The big cherry vine

Whether heirloom, cherry or exotic, the variety of tomato isn’t a hindrance to adding this fruit (that’s often used as a vegetable so it’s in the clear) to your balcony vegetable garden. The easiest way to do this is to cut a good tomato into four pieces and bury them about a half-inch into fertile soil. You can start off with a smaller pot and graduate to bigger sizes as your plant begins to grow. 

Balcony Vegetable Garden Addition #2: Bell Peppers

balcony vegetable garden-bell pepper plants
A clump of capsicum

Bell pepper, or capsicum as it’s commonly known, is a popular addition to cuisines spanning Indian, European and Chinese. Naturally, then, it makes for a great addition to your balcony vegetable patch. They grow well in clay, plastic or terracotta containers with a good draining system. Plant dry capsicum seeds about 2-3 centimetres into the loamy soil and keep the pot in a dry and humid area. 

Balcony Vegetable Garden Addition #3: Spinach

balcony vegetable garden-spinach plants
Grow Popeye’s favourite

You can easily grow Spinach in containers from seeds or starts. It is pertinent to note that the smaller varieties are definitely better suited to pots and containers. To begin growing spinach, sow seeds into the soil at least an inch apart; after three weeks, you can move the containers outdoors. If you’re working with transplants, place them at least 6 inches apart in a pot. Spinach requires regular moisture to grow, so consider watering them frequently. 

Balcony Vegetable Garden Addition #4: Radishes

how to start a balcony garden-radish plant
Micro radishes

Radish is quick-yielding, which means you won’t have to wait for months on end until you can use your home-grown veggies in the kitchen. You can grow th long radishes in deep pots as they grow downwards; the ideal soil mixture for their growth is red soil, manure and cocopeat. Sow each seed about half an inch deep, and stick to a maximum of two per pot so there’s space to germinate and grow. 

Balcony Vegetable Garden Addition #5: Pumpkin

how to start a vegetable garden-pumpkin plants
The Halloween vine

You can grow pumpkins in pots and containers and thrive just as well as those in acres of soil. However, you’ll benefit from a container that is 3 feet wide and deep enough to hold soil. A layer of compost is a must as this provides the nourishment that the plant needs while growing. Stick to planting 3 or 4 seeds per pot, and thin them down to two seedlings per pot once they’ve germinated. 

If you want to some flowers to your vegetable patch, also explore Best Flowering Indoor Plants.

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— editor@livspace.com