I run a local urban gardening group and I get new requests every day from newer gardeners who are struggling with having no backyard and/or a lack of sunlight to grow food.
Luckily, there are actually a lot of great ideas to grow shade tolerant foods as well as simple solutions to having little to not space in a Yard. I know another common problem is being a renter and not being allowed to put up permanent structures; we’ve also covered that!
How to grow a thriving urban garden
First, one of the most important things to do as an urban gardener is to really take a good look at what you and your family actually eat. If you’re low on space or sun, there’s no need growing something you don’t eat much or don’t really like.
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Basic space and shade problems addressed:
1 – Do you have a patio, fence, or other that you could put or build planter boxes into? Even in the shade, you can grow greens and herbs.
2 – Are you able to or allowed to have a window planter outside of your kitchen window? If you look into permaculture this would be in your zone 0 or 1 because it’s right in the center of your daily life. Consider what you need the most like herbs, greens, green onions, bush beans, radish, etc. can all be grown in a window box.
3 – Use the bottle method to grow herbs. I like Urban Leaf because they do this and promise to make a green thumb out of anyone >> https://geturbanleaf.com/bottle-gardens/?sscid=41k4_oy1aq
4 – Can you plant perennials around trees? Things like chives are edible and beautiful!
5 – Choose buckets and containers to have on your porch for larger things like nightshades {Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant for instance}. I recommend: https://www.bootstrapfarmer.com/collections/grow-bags…
6 – Grow sprouts and microgreens! Both can be done in jar lids or sheet trays or in whatever you have in a windowsill. They’re packed with nutrition and have a very short seedling to harvest period.
7 – Other ideas? There are PLENTY more, but let’s talk about what’s worked for others and how to make the most of even small spaces. Just comment on the post below to share your other ideas!
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