In the theme of a previous post of mine eliciting responses to a cat conundrum (to which I received great advice) I would like help with growing things to eat.
I’ve just invested some of my hard earned dosh on an upside down tomato grower (I’ll let you know how that goes once it arrives) but I’d like some experiences on making food in limited spaces, drainage is my major issue at this point due to concerns about below dwellings. Thanks again you great dopers!
If I just had a veranda, I’d get a bush-type tomato plant, a bush-type cucumber plant, and two largish planters that I’d fill with mixed salad greens and Swiss chard. The greens and chard can be grown densely, and can be picked constantly for weeks or months and always grow back. You can be careful about not watering so much that loads of water comes out the bottom.
Drainage is actually not your main issue. Lighting is. I’ve grown things on a lot of apartment patios in my day, and usually - depending on how your building is designed - most of a day’s sunlight is blocked by your neighbors and the rest of the structure. Two or three hours of direct sunlight is not enough for most tomatoes, and the first thing anyone says when they want to grow their own food is “I wanna grow tomatoes.”
Swiss chard, and other greens, is a very good idea, as are herbs - cilantro, chives, oregano, etc. - and smaller pepper plants. Strawberries, too.
How hot do your summers get and how cold are your winters? What kind of produce do you like to eat, and what’s pricey at the local stores? (It makes no sense to knock yourself out growing potatoes if you can get them for 50c a pound, for example.)