Creating An Urban Garden

If you live in an apartment or the city, yet still want to grow your own vegetables, there is still hope. People all over the world who have apartments and little spaces to grow anything are finding ways to do so. There are only three basic requirements one needs - light, soil, and water. And the soil doesn't have to be the kind that comes with a yard - but raised containers work just as equally.

To start your urban garden, locate a spot inside your apartment or on a patio that gets at least six to eight hours of sunlight a day and has access to water. Some people use their roof, window boxes, patios, doorways, sidewalks and roof eaves with hanging baskets for their containers. Most landlords don't mind if you have a small garden in or around your apartment, but you may want to ask for permission anyhow.

When putting plants in pots, remember that vegetables don't like to have wet roots. To keep your containers from accumulating moisture in the bottom, drill at least one drainage hole to allow excess water to drain away. For bigger containers, that is those that are16 inches in diameter or more, fill the bottom third of the pot with a materials that will create empty spaces, such as broken shards of terra cotta pots, large stones, or Styrofoam peanuts. The peanuts have the benefit of being lightweight, allowing you to move larger containers from one place to another. You will then cover the material with a layer of newspaper to prevent soil from sifting out of the drainage holes.

Almost all vegetables grow well in containers, but choosing the right variety does help. There are tomato varieties that stay a manageable size for pots and if you are looking for vines, tomatoes that do well in baskets. 'Window Box Roma' tomato, for instance, stays a size that's manageable for pots, and 'Tumbler' tomato vines spill nicely out of hanging baskets. Beans, peas, and even squash can be grown up trellises set into a larger container.

For squash, there is a compact yellow squash called the 'Sunburst' yellow and there is also the 'Spacemiser' zucchini. 'Miniature White' cucumbers have small vines and unusual white fruit. There is a lot of information on the Internet for those who want to do a little research on the best vegetables. There are many shallow-rooted plants, such as lettuce, spinach, radishes, and herbs, that need only 6 to 8 inches of soil depth to grow well, while deeper-rooted plants, such as tomatoes and squash, need 12 inches of soil. For deeper rooted plants, you can use terra-cotta pots, wooden boxes, and even 5-gallon buckets. Just be sure they each have drainage holes and are big enough to support the plants growing in them. Fill your containers with a well-draining potting mix (topsoil will compact in containers) that has some compost or an organic granulated fertilizer mixed in.

Gardening in a small space may have its limited but it can be done. The benefits of having a small garden is that you can pay more attention to detail.

If you find your apartment is too small and limited but you still want to grow your own vegetables, you can look into community gardens. Some non-profits and community groups transform vacant lots into gardens where local people can rent plots. Community gardens provide a wonderful escape from city life and can give you an opportunity to meet other people in the neighborhood. So if it's a garden you're after, don't let apartment life stop you. With a little creativity you can bring a little piece of the farm to the city.