Activity Corner: Growing a vegetable garden in your own space

But just because you live in the city and do not have a large yard or land to garden on does not mean that you cannot have a productive and beautiful green space at home. You can try out your green thumb by having you own little vegetable garden on a balcony and it’s not all that difficult. Just by adapting the following tips and techniques, you can enjoy fresh herbs and vegetables even in your own high-rise building. Because, at the end of the day, what can be more satisfying than sitting amidst the veggies and herbs which look as fabulous as they taste. 

Vegetables that don’t take lot of space to grow are perfect for growing on balcony. Tomatoes and peppers are without a doubt the first ones you need to consider as they are the easiest to grow. You can grow vegetable vines too, they grow vertically and take less space. In small pots, you can grow green leafy vegetables like lettuce, spinach, radish and fenugreek as well as some common herbs such as parsley, chive, mint or basil. Also, when you grow vegetables, find there companion herbs to grow with them. The combination of them enhances the taste of vegetables and you will also get fresh supply of herbs too. 

Before purchasing pots for your vegetable balcony garden, you must consider whether you want to grow vegetables for ornamental or utility purposes. If utility is more important for you, then simply select containers, propagation trays, plastic window boxes in which many plants can grow together. If you care for the lookof your balcony vegetable garden then choose colourful pots, decorative barrels and urns and modern designer containers. Keep in mind that the size of the pot must match the pace of growth and requirements of plants you’re growing. You can grow pepper, eggplant, peas and cherry tomatoes in a 7 to 14-litre size container. Large containers can be used for tall tomato varieties and for beans. Seedlings of vegetable plants can be grown in a seed tray or small container to save space, later they need to be transplanted in bigger containers.

Vegetables grown in pots require loose, well drained, fertile and nutritious soil. You can buy readymade potting mix for this. If you want to prepare it by yourself, you will need the compost, garden soil, gravel and perlite. In addition, mix organic fertiliser and hydrogel crystals. Hydrogel crystals absorb excess water in them and keep it for later supply to the plant’s roots directly. These water absorbing crystals are very useful for container gardening as they save both time and water. If possible, do a soil testing at home to identify the pH value of the soil. Generally, vegetables grow in slightly acidic to neutral soil (6-7 pH). Once you find out your soil type (alkaline or acidic) you can amend it according to the plant you’re growing.

Vegetable seeds can be sown on a seed tray. After germination, transplant them when top two real leaves have grown. Some vegetables might not transplant well, so it’s better to sow them in separate pots. Vegetables such as gourds or melons, cucumbers and squash do not tolerate transplanting and damage in roots, therefore plant them only once at the right location. If you do not want to sow seeds, purchase plants from the nursery. Buy plants that are healthy and do not have any pests or diseases.

Seedlings should be transplanted on cloudy days onto a moist soil; this helps the young plants in establishing well. On sunny days, planting should be done in evenings. Before transplanting the seedlings, water them abundantly, this prevents the breakdown of soil around the roots. Seeding should be planted at right depth. Tomatoes can be planted deeper, until the first leaves; this stimulates adventitious roots and thus strengthens the plant. Lettuce planted too deep cannot develop heads. Celery also planted too deeply develops not correct the root. 

Quick tip: Feed with one tablespoon Epsom salt mixed in four litres of water after planting to avoid disruption of roots during transplant.

Because their roots are restricted, potted veggies need constant vigilance. Watch and correct signs of wilting in particular. It’s easy for pots, especially plastic pots to heat up and fry plant roots. Clay pots are prone to drying out their soil contents quickly so keep a watering system handy. Preferably set up an irrigation system of small, flexible pipes that drip into each pot when you turn on a tap. Otherwise use a hose or watering can and give your pots their main watering in the morning before the sun gets high and hot. 

Just like vegetables grown in the ground, stress by any means, such as lack of water even for a short time, lack of nutrients, cold snaps, blasts of wind and so on, will more often than not result in the vegetable plants producing small harvests, succumbing to disease, or in some varieties, bolting to seed.

Roots go down and out a remarkably long way in most plants when grown unrestricted, so when contained by walls, roots have no means to go further and deeper in search of food and water. Due to extra watering, nutrients get washed away quicker in a container than in the ground also. 

Thus as well as watering, regular feeding is a must. Use diluted liquid fertiliser every one to three weeks depending on what plants you have growing. 

It is also very important that mulch (material such as decaying leaves, bark, or compost) is put on top of the container, especially when plants are small, pots are big, and there’s lots of soil exposure. This will slow evaporation and keep the surface temperature of the soil cooler. Plants with smaller, fibrous roots like tomatoes can so easily dry and die in hot soil. Sharp gravel will act as mulch and also deters diggers such as squirrels. Some of the rounded or coloured pea gravels are attractive and to a lesser degree will act as a pest barrier, but remember you will be replanting or re-potting vegetables often, so will need to remove these sorts of permanent mulches when necessary.