{"id":6124,"date":"2018-07-11T03:26:05","date_gmt":"2018-07-10T16:26:05","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/?p=6124"},"modified":"2024-01-08T13:40:15","modified_gmt":"2024-01-08T02:40:15","slug":"how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/","title":{"rendered":"How to grow vegetables on your balcony"},"content":{"rendered":"

Living in a city doesn\u2019t have to mean missing out on fresh organic vegetables and herbs at home. Even with the (teeniest) tiniest balcony, you can create a thriving kitchen garden of your very own. Not only can you consume what you harvest, you\u2019ll feel like a proud parent as you watch your veggies grow.<\/p>\n

You\u2019re going to love casually popping out to pluck some mint leaves for your Pimms this summer. And with a blossoming balcony allotment, there really won\u2019t be any excuse to not meet your 5-a-day quota anymore.<\/p>\n

Here are some tips and tricks to get you started with growing vegetables in London:<\/p>\n

Start with herbs<\/h2>\n

New to the world of edible gardening? Kick off with planting herbs. Why? They\u2019re super easy to grow and all they need is a few hours of sunlight. It\u2019s a good idea to start small to see what you can maintain before you go all out.<\/p>\n

Mint, basil, parsley, oregano, try them all. And hey, you might even get inspired to try a new mix of flavours in your cooking.<\/p>\n

Consider hanging plants for limited space<\/h2>\n

If you\u2019re the proud owner of a smaller balcony, don\u2019t let that get in the way of you and your fresh veg. Opt for vertical gardening to maximise your space. Check out some ideas below:<\/p>\n

Create a DIY wall planter<\/h3>\n

\"urban<\/h2>\n

Source: Pinterest – zinawright.typepad.com<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Use a hanging shoe organiser for your herbs<\/h3>\n

\"Gardening<\/p>\n

Source: Pinterest – instructables.com<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Hang plant pots in rows to maximise space<\/h3>\n

\"urban<\/h2>\n

Source: Pinterest – bhg.com<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n

Position plants based on sunlight access<\/h2>\n

Most plants will require 6 hours of sunshine a day. Some, such as root vegetables, can get by on less. This is why you need to put a little time and effort into planning your micro allotment. You should arrange your plants based on their own specific needs. Some will be needier than others.<\/p>\n

It also helps to arrange your pots before you pour the soil so they\u2019re easier to move around.<\/p>\n

Choose deep pots which retain moisture for longer<\/h2>\n

Small pots tend to dry quickly, so opt for deeper pots to keep the soil most. It\u2019s especially important to use larger pots if you\u2019re growing big veg such as courgettes, peppers and tomatoes. For vegetables of this size, choose pots that are around 40cm deep. For herbs and smaller veg such as carrots or radishes, 20cm deep should be sufficient for them to thrive.<\/p>\n

Use a soil-less\u00a0potting blend<\/h2>\n

A soil-less potting medium is lighter and good at retaining moisture.\u00a0 Paired with organic fertiliser, it should result in some plump and juicy homegrown veg. So much better than store-bought.<\/p>\n

Consistent care is key<\/h2>\n

Though balcony allotments are fairly low maintenance, you\u2019ll need to take a little time out of hectic city life to care for your babies. Consistent watering, fertilising, and pruning is important. Seed packets will tell you all you need to know about specific care instructions.<\/p>\n

Don\u2019t let the maintenance factor stress you out, as most plants won\u2019t need much watering and pruning is only required every so often. Things just get a little out of hand if you neglect them for a while. If you need help caring for your balcony garden while you\u2019re away, there are plenty of great gardening services in London<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Combine different types of veg into one pot based on needs<\/h2>\n

Want to combine more than one plant into one pot? It\u2019s generally a good idea. Pair plants into pots based on their needs. For instance, lettuce and herbs are great companions as they have similar requirements for water and fertiliser. Aubergines and beans also go well together.<\/p>\n

Avoid incompatible combinations to make caring for your urban allotment easier.<\/p>\n

Need some help in the gardening? Find trusted and local gardeners in London<\/a> with Airtasker<\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Up your veggie intake with just a little balcony space.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":43,"featured_media":6130,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2153,396],"tags":[950,952],"language":["en-GB"],"class_list":["post-6124","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gardening","category-other-gb","tag-garden-ideas-gb","tag-gardening-gb"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHow to grow vegetables on your balcony | Airtasker<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Limited outdoor space? Check out our guide for growing vegetables on your balcony, and find gardening services in London for extra help.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"How to grow vegetables on your balcony | Airtasker\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Limited outdoor space? Check out our guide for growing vegetables on your balcony, and find gardening services in London for extra help.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Airtasker Blog\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2018-07-10T16:26:05+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-01-08T02:40:15+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/airtasker-seo-wordpress-blog-assets-prod.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/24064701\/food-salad-healthy-vegetables.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1200\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"400\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Maha\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Maha\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"How to grow vegetables on your balcony | Airtasker","description":"Limited outdoor space? Check out our guide for growing vegetables on your balcony, and find gardening services in London for extra help.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"How to grow vegetables on your balcony | Airtasker","og_description":"Limited outdoor space? Check out our guide for growing vegetables on your balcony, and find gardening services in London for extra help.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/","og_site_name":"Airtasker Blog","article_published_time":"2018-07-10T16:26:05+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-01-08T02:40:15+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1200,"height":400,"url":"https:\/\/airtasker-seo-wordpress-blog-assets-prod.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/24064701\/food-salad-healthy-vegetables.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Maha","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Maha","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/"},"author":{"name":"Maha","@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/241934cf3dd8b35a9fb9bb930ee18f1b"},"headline":"How to grow vegetables on your balcony","datePublished":"2018-07-10T16:26:05+00:00","dateModified":"2024-01-08T02:40:15+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/"},"wordCount":657,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/airtasker-seo-wordpress-blog-assets-prod.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/24064701\/food-salad-healthy-vegetables.jpg","keywords":["garden ideas","gardening"],"articleSection":["Gardening","Other GB"],"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/","url":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/","name":"How to grow vegetables on your balcony | Airtasker","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/airtasker-seo-wordpress-blog-assets-prod.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/24064701\/food-salad-healthy-vegetables.jpg","datePublished":"2018-07-10T16:26:05+00:00","dateModified":"2024-01-08T02:40:15+00:00","description":"Limited outdoor space? Check out our guide for growing vegetables on your balcony, and find gardening services in London for extra help.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-AU","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/airtasker-seo-wordpress-blog-assets-prod.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/24064701\/food-salad-healthy-vegetables.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/airtasker-seo-wordpress-blog-assets-prod.s3.ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/07\/24064701\/food-salad-healthy-vegetables.jpg","width":1200,"height":400,"caption":"urban allotments"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/uk\/how-to-grow-vegetables-on-your-balcony\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"How to grow vegetables on your balcony"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/","name":"Airtasker","description":"The skills you need to help get more done in your home, garden, office and life.","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-AU"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/#organization","name":"Airtasker","url":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/airtasker-logo.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/airtasker-logo.svg","width":148,"height":40,"caption":"Airtasker"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"}},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/241934cf3dd8b35a9fb9bb930ee18f1b","name":"Maha","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-AU","@id":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3d29084019cfb7d2a7c1f4255e80cde9f3c37b52bc45bbf2eb56a7b496dbdeef?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3d29084019cfb7d2a7c1f4255e80cde9f3c37b52bc45bbf2eb56a7b496dbdeef?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Maha"},"url":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/author\/maha-elleylive-co-uk\/"}]}},"lang":"uk","translations":{"uk":6124},"pll_sync_post":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6124","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/43"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6124"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6124\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6130"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6124"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6124"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6124"},{"taxonomy":"language","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.airtasker.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/language?post=6124"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}