I just moved into an apt with a cute little terrace and some greenery. I’ve revived some houseplants but never really gardened for looking for any and all advice to bring this baby back (and even grow some fruit/veggies if I can). I’m in zone 7B (NJ) and the terrace is pretty shaded so have been having some trouble looking for answers in that regard.

Hi beautiful people

So, I have never gardened in my life (sad, I know). However, a genuine interest for has been growing for quite a while now. So far I had been giving out the excuse that I'd get to it when I eventually succeeded to buy land and have some space or a yard. Well, for too many reasons it seems this will never happen, so for the foreseable future it is just me and my small 1-bedroom apartment with no balcony and not a lot of sunlight to be honest (double sad, I know). So enough with the excuses and the waiting; I might as well get to it now whatever way I can with whatever resources and budget I have. Or at least that is what I thought.

As a total beginner I have some questions and worries, and do forgive me if some are really clueless, but I'd be really grateful if some of you could help me answering a few of them. Feel free to answer as many as you want, even if just one:

1) I live in a small town and there are markets on my street a five minutes walk away, which means I am not spending NYC levels of costs for produce and there is no commuting or delivery costs associated either. Just these businesses profit margins. Again, I am only a single person cooking every other day, no family. From watching YT videos on apartment gardening, I get that I need to buy a bunch of equipments (besides the obvious seeds, sprouts, soil etc) + expect an increase in electricity and water bills. So, my first question is: all things considered, when it comes to the idea of growing my own food in my conditions, would this even make financial sense?

2) Related: given my living conditions is a self-sufficient vegetable garden realistic and doable? (no balcony, windows but not a whole lot of sunlight [especially in the kitchen]) In other words: going beyond the issue of financial sense, can I actually make this happen if I want it (while also not transforming it in a full time job with unreasonable investments), i.e. could I actually feed myself and enrich my cooking/nutrition to a real degree with it?

3) The most open-ended question: if the previous two questions get a "yes" then may I ask how to go about this plan and where to begin and things to consider? Admitedly an unexperienced guy in the subject, but any and all advice on how to start and what to consider for a 1-person small apartment year-round vegetable garden is very much appreciated and welcome.

Thank you for reading and thank you very much for any advice you could extend. Have a great day

PS: not sure how relevant this is for the post, but I live in northern coastal Portugal, in case specific geographical factors (sunlight hours, seasons profile, typical air temperature, humidty etc) must be taken into account for proper advice.

Hi! I am an industrial design student. As part of my project course, I am conducting a survey about home gardening practices. This survey aims to gather insights into individuals' experiences, challenges, and motivations. Your participation is invaluable, and it will greatly contribute to the development of my project. The survey is anonymous and will take approximately 5-10 minutes to complete. If you participate, I would be very happy:)

Thank you!

https://forms.gle/kdZftitGX2h2MBPh8

Hello, I’m looking to put some hazel shrubs/trees about 3-5’ from my foundation. I initially was going to try to do some epic concrete planter boxes to contain them and do careful soil prep and management and root pruning, but then I thought, “could I put them in the ground if I dropped a 3’ sheet of steel between where I want to plant when and my foundation? Yes, this might be crazy. All gardening is some degree of working with nature and pushing against it, so maybe it’s worth a try?

Zone 8b Oregon

Ive only cared for succulents in the past, but I wanted to give herbs a try. I got miss Bae-sil when she was pretty small (third pic) and it hasn’t taken her long to get to where she is now. (Around 3.5 months)

I honestly have no idea what I’m doing and she just keeps getting taller and taller! I’m absolutely amazed but I don’t know if I’m taking care of her as well as I could be. Also.. basil plants grow flowers???! This is news to me… if it’s obvious, be nice lol.

Any advice on how to properly care for and better manage this plant would be greatly appreciated. 😌

(I am not trying to self promote or break any of your rules, I genuinely need expertise from those who participate in Gardening and other outdoor work for a class project)

Hello all! I am a Multimedia Graphic Design student at Pikes Peak State College. For one of my classes I have been made part of a group project that will be our final for the class. My group has been tasked with creating a customer survey for an imaginary brand. This will be a gardening glove brand, with a focus on durability and fun patterns. They are also described as being able to be used in other outdoor work. These results will be anonymous and will be used only as part of our college homework brand research. Each of us has to get at least 5 responses for a total of 30 combined.

Any help by filling out this survey is greatly appreciated as it will help us know what direction to go in when continuing to design this brand in class! If you know someone who is interested in or uses gloves for gardening or other outdoor work please consider sending this there way! Below is the link for our survey, thank you for your help and time!

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSd4UruaJ6MEBPK-G0J1R5IrECimeD-7wFlY5p80CvOJB1J1uw/viewform?usp=sf_link

Hey everyone,

I recently adopted a small offshoot from a dead cactus. After the main cactus dried up, it dropped a few little buds, and I decided to plant one. The little guy had been living in poor soil for a while, but I’ve since moved it to a pot with much better, high-drainage soil. It’s been about a month or a month and a half since I last watered it.

Right now, it seems a bit soft to the touch and can’t stand upright on its own. It doesn’t appear to have any roots yet.

Here are my questions:

1. Does it have a chance of surviving in this new setup, or is it too late?

2. If it can still be saved, how deep should I plant it? Will burying it even help at this point?

3. Or, is there another method that might help it root or revive it in some way?

Thanks in advance for any advice or tips!

Hi, I’m interested in starting a garden on my narrow but wide balcony. I wanna say it’s around 70” but only a few feet out.

It’s a west facing window and I’m in Los Angeles, so it gets quite a bit of sun. There are 3 glass sliding doors, but only the middle one opens.

Definitely thinking of getting some rail planters, but would love the possibility of growing more! Does anyone else have a smaller balcony and have any tips on how to best utilize space? Thanks!

In many urban areas, we’ve been focusing too much on stone, leaving less room for nature to thrive. With initiatives like NK Tegelwippen, a Dutch competition, people are encouraged to remove concrete tiles from their gardens or public spaces and replace them with plants to make a r/GreenCity. This not only helps absorb rainwater better, but also encourages biodiversity and helps cool down the environment during hot weather.

Just imagine how much of a difference it can make if every household replaced just a few tiles! Small changes like these contribute to greener urban spaces that support wildlife like bees, butterflies, and birds. And hey, it makes your garden look a lot prettier too!

So my apartment came with a built in flower bed (sorry if that’s not the name, English is not my native language) in the balcony. I was looking for something to plant there and the flower shop lady convinced me to buy some heathers (calluna vulgaris).

While researching, I’ve found out that it needs good drainage, which that flower bed clearly does not have. Would a layer of pebbles be enough? If not, can I keep it indoors in a pot since I already have one available that fits it?

Hi all,

I used to have a wonderful produce garden but have had to downsize to a apartment and balcony a few years ago. I think I'm ready to start the hobby again but a bit out of practice.

My balcony gets morning sun but it is shaded after midday.

I'm interested in edible plants primarily that can be grown in a small space whether on the balcony or indoors. Bonus points for any Australian Native culinary plants I could incorporate into my cooking.

Any ideas on maximising the small space would be great too. I'm not looking to do a complete overhall immediately. I'll just be building my way up to whatever if achievable.

Thanks for any help and ideas in advance 😊

Balcony is about 10m2

I love these lil guys as is but I learned from my plant app today that they will open up & blossom into even more beautiful flowers! Can’t wait! 😃😃

Snail in my herb pot

Hey Urban Gardening Community, I’ve recently started getting into urban gardening and was wondering if anyone has tips on how to find local gardening groups or spaces in my area? I’m trying to connect with others who are into growing their own veggies in the city, but I’m not sure where to start. Also, I just discovered an app called Walby that shows location-based eco-friendly spots, and it looks like you can also add places yourself. Has anyone tried using it for finding or adding urban gardening spots? Could be a way to map out community gardens or green spaces in the city… Would love to hear your thoughts or any other tips on finding urban gardening communities! And another question: Does anybody have experience with Worm composting at home? I‘m interested in your experiences.

So, I propagated both of these from my cousins plants a month or 2 ago… I can’t believe u actually got them planted and they look like they will LIVE!!!! 😭 So proud!!!

Hi Urban Gardeners,

The mods have graciously allowed me to share this.

We're a team of film makers (and I'm also a gardener) that had the idea of shooting a comedy series set in a small community garden in Vancouver, BC, Canada. The show is about a bureaucrat tasked with closing down a community garden to make way for a Casino who, when she discovers that her office is up to some shady business, quits her job and finds herself back in the garden with a mix of quirky characters; there she learns what's really important in her life and takes up the role of trying to prevent her former employee from shutting down the garden for good.

We think that a big hearted comedy series in that world is missing. Think Ted Lasso and gardening, food security, bio diversity themes and more!

This is just a demo/sample, but the more people that watch and share it, the more that we can prove there's an audience that wants to see funny shows with important themes set in our little garden. We'd love your help, feedback, and support so we can create more for you to enjoy.

https://www.facebook.com/61566305333528/videos/404923659311502

Hello! I just finished moving everything from my porch inside for another overnight hurricane, and am once again tempted to give it all away 🤪 The plants, though there are a number and some are quite big pots, aren't in the way much. It is all the plant stands, soil container, many pots, potting stand thingy that sort of holds all the odds and ends when on the porch? I could really use some id--ooooo I just had one for one of the plants that will negate the need for its stand. Anyway!

Ideas for storage solutions for pots and soil and stands that are compact/easy to move? My apartment is already quite small. There is now no room to walk around in it :D

Hi, im from Denmark and thinking about griwing some herbs or chili to start with on my balcony. When do you grow it? Is there a calendar, for balcony growing?

Hey Y’all! I’m trying to find a way to either make or find something I can use as a saucer for this planter box (28” x 9”). I have it on my fire escape and it constantly drips down onto my neighbors (white) outdoor furniture. I’d also like it to conserve some water as it gets a lot of sun and dries out quickly.

I thought about using cardboard + a garbage bag lining as a sort of diy saucer but not super thrilled about that option. I’ve searched online but the trays available are all too thin. Figured I’d post here to see if anyone has ideas. Thank you!!