← Garden Guide

Gardening in small spaces

No garden? No problem. A sunny balcony, a wide windowsill, a single railing planter — even a closed tray on the kitchen counter can feed you. Small-space gardening has its own rules: containers dry out faster, weight matters, and a south-facing orientation is worth more than an extra square metre of shade. This chapter translates the SFG mindset to apartment life.

Why garden on a balcony or windowsill?

  • Fresh herbs steps from the stove — rosemary, basil and chives always beat the supermarket pot.
  • Cherry tomatoes, chilies and lettuce on a sunny balcony can meaningfully reduce your grocery spend.
  • Growing one thing yourself, no matter how small, changes how you cook and shop.
  • Renters aren't locked out — containers move with you when the lease ends.

    • Container gardening

    A container is a small ecosystem you carry on your arm: less forgiving than a bed, but faster to set up and completely portable. Four rules-of-thumb cover 90% of it.

    Pot size

    Bigger is better: roots need space, and a bigger soil volume stays evenly moist. Herbs: 2–5 L. Lettuce, radish, chives: 5 L. Bush tomato, pepper, chili, zucchini: 20–30 L. Indeterminate tomato: 40 L+. Carrots need depth, not width — at least 25 cm deep.

    Drainage

    Every container needs drainage holes — otherwise roots rot after the first heavy rain. A 2–3 cm layer of gravel or broken terracotta at the bottom keeps holes clear. Put a saucer under indoor pots, but empty it after 30 minutes so roots aren't standing in water.

    Soil

    Don't use plain garden soil — it compacts hard and drowns roots. Use a specialised container mix, or mix your own: 2 parts quality potting mix, 1 part compost, 1 part perlite or vermiculite. Top up with fresh compost every spring; replace entirely every 2–3 years.

    Watering

    Containers dry 2–3× faster than beds. In hot weather a small pot can need water twice a day. Finger test daily; water until excess runs from the drainage holes. Self-watering planters (double-wall with reservoir) extend that to 3–5 days and are worth the money for balcony gardens.

    Vertical gardening — grow upward, not outward

    Every wall is potential growing area. Vertical solutions turn 1 m² of floor into 4–5 m² of planting surface.

  • Wall-mounted pocket planters or felt pockets — light, cheap, perfect for herbs and lettuce. Mount on a south or east wall.
  • Strawberry towers / stacking planters — tiered pots where each layer hosts 4–6 strawberries. Rotate weekly for even sun.
  • Trellis or lattice against a wall with climbing beans, peas, cucumber, or compact tomatoes — the wall shelters from wind and reflects heat.
  • Rail planters that clip onto balcony railings — zero floor space, high sun exposure, great for trailing nasturtiums, thyme and cherry tomatoes.

    • Balcony specifics

    A balcony isn't just a small garden — it has its own physics. Four things to check before you commit.

    Weight

    Wet soil weighs a lot. One saturated 40 L container hits 45–50 kg. A row of balcony planters can add 200–400 kg per m². German rental flats are typically rated for 300 kg/m² — check your lease or ask the landlord. Place heavy pots over load-bearing walls, not cantilevered corners.

    Wind

    From the 3rd floor upward wind dries plants dramatically and bends stems. Plant windbreaks of evergreen herbs (rosemary, bay) on the exposed side, or install a reed or bamboo screen. Stake tall plants early. Shorter, bushier varieties beat tall ones on windy balconies.

    Sun orientation

    South: 6+ hours, full veg range works. East: morning sun, half-day crops — lettuce, herbs, strawberries. West: afternoon sun gets hot; mediterranean herbs thrive, salad bolts. North: shade only — mâche, parsley, mint, chives. Check at your own balcony with a phone compass before buying pots.

    Landlord / HOA rules

    Check before drilling: many leases forbid attaching anything to the facade, and some HOAs regulate what's visible from the street. Rail planters that hook over the railing (no drilling) and freestanding pots on the floor are usually always fine.

    Windowsill herbs

    The smallest garden of all: a 10 cm wide strip of south- or east-facing window. Five herbs that actually reward indoor growing.

  • Winners: chives, basil, parsley, mint, thyme — all tolerate indoor conditions and harvesting.
  • Minimum 4–5 hours of direct sun, or add a small LED grow light (10–20 W) on a timer — the #1 reason supermarket herb pots die is low light.
  • Rotate pots 90° every week so plants grow straight rather than leaning toward the glass.
  • Supermarket herb pots are 20+ seedlings crammed in one pot; split them into 3–4 smaller pots on the way home to give roots room.

    • What actually thrives in containers

    Pick plants that were bred compact, or choose varieties explicitly sold as 'balcony', 'bush' or 'patio'.

    Container winners

  • Cherry tomatoes (bush varieties like 'Balkonstar', 'Red Robin', 'Tiny Tim')
  • Chilies and peppers — love pots and radiated balcony heat
  • Lettuce, arugula, spinach, Asian greens — shallow-rooted, quick harvest
  • Herbs — basil, chives, parsley, mint, thyme, rosemary, oregano
  • Radishes, strawberries, bush beans, compact cucumbers ('Spacemaster'), dwarf carrots

    • Poor container candidates

  • Corn — needs block planting for pollination, too tall
  • Pumpkin and winter squash — one plant wants 3+ m² ground
  • Full-size climbing beans without serious trellis and weight capacity
  • Asparagus, rhubarb — long-lived deep-rooters, better in the ground

    • Microgreens & sprouts — zero-space gardening

    Microgreens are the ultimate no-garden crop: a seedling tray on a kitchen counter, harvest in 7–14 days, nutrient density often 5× the mature plant. Good first-time grow for anyone who wants to eat their own in a week.

  • Tray 3–5 cm deep with drainage holes, filled with a thin layer of potting mix — or just moist paper towel for sprouts.
  • Scatter seeds thickly, press in, cover with a second tray for 2–3 days (dark germination), then uncover and place by a window.
  • Mist daily; keep the soil moist, never soaking. Ready to cut with scissors at 5–8 cm tall, usually 7–14 days from sowing.
  • Best seeds: radish, broccoli, pea, sunflower, mustard, cress, red cabbage, buckwheat. Buy untreated seed marked for sprouting or microgreen use.

    • PlotMate tip: treat a single large container as a 1-square-foot bed. Create a 1×1 bed for each pot and use the companion and rotation checks just like you would in a real raised bed — even a balcony benefits from rotating tomato and basil with next year's lettuce and peas.