3 rules to follow for growing fruit and vegetables in small spaces
Limited outdoor space doesn’t mean you can’t reap the rewards of delicious homegrown fruit and vegetables. After all, nothing quite beats making a cocktail in the kitchen using fresh mint, or the satisfaction of adding some homegrown tomatoes to a side salad.
If you only have a smaller garden, balcony, patio, or even a windowsill to play with, fear not. You might even be surprised by how little room you need to help fruit and veg come to life.
Lucy Hutchings and Kate Cotterill, garden designers and co-directors of heirloom seed company She Grows Veg, tell Country Living: 'Even if you only have a small space available that doesn’t mean you can’t grow loads of your own food. It’s just a matter of being clever with the space you have and picking the right varieties.'
Whether you want to start your own herb garden or get growing delicious vegetables, below are three rules to follow on how you can make your smaller outdoor space work for you, just in time for National Gardening Week (29th April - 5th May)...
Be creative with containers
'There are certain varieties of fruit and vegetables that are specifically suited to growing in containers. They tend to be shorter in stature and don’t require support such as staking. Their smaller size tends to mean that they’re happier with a bit more root restriction that you get in a container,' says Lucy and Kate.
The pair stress they’re small but mighty too, adding: 'Don’t let their small size fool you, these plants are still really productive.'
Think vertically
If you’re limited with square footage, consider going up instead. Thinking vertically is a layout and growing tactic we often overlook in our gardens – not to mention the fact that it can add so much character to an outdoor space.
Lucy and Kate explain: 'Don’t just look at the floor space you have available, think about growing vertically. Using trellises and arches to grow hungry crops like squashes and climbers can be a great space saver. If you’re using containers you can still make the most of arches by placing the containers nearby and creating a beautiful edible canopy within your space.
'We often forget about our windowsills once we’ve finished propagating, but don’t forget these are great growing spaces – particularly south-facing ones. With your indoor sills bursting with micro tomatoes and herbs and outdoor window boxes full of dwarf beans and edible flowers, these can be truly productive spaces of your home.'
Choose small vegetable varieties
There are a whole range of seeds that are specially designed for containers and small-space growing – and even some edible houseplants that you can grow in your house.
Lucy and Kate share a few varieties to consider below…
Recommended small space vegetable varieties:
Dwarf Beans such as Oscar Broad bean and Red Swan, a beautiful pink french bean that will only get around knee high.
Tom Thumb Pea – produces loads of peas on a pocket size plant.
Vilma Micro Tomato – happy on a sunny windowsill and can even grow you tomatoes through winter under a grow light.
Lettuce, such as Copacabana and Arcade, make great cut and come again salad leaves.
Purple Ball Basil – a nice compact deep purple basil that can be grown on a windowsill.
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