Growing a garden on a balcony can be an overwhelming task for multiple reasons. Although you have a smaller outdoor space to manage, it can feel like a part-time job if you’re not aware of the common balcony garden problems that are likely to arise beforehand. A balcony for some is the focal point of their residence. It is exposed and it screams, “Here I am, world!”. That’s why understanding what you’re about to embark on is essential for successfully growing a lush and abundant garden.
plan to avoid balcony garden problems
When you begin pondering about growing a garden or not, it’s the best time to begin making decisions about what you want to grow in your garden. Thoughts to ponder might sound like, Do I want an edible garden? Or do I want a garden that uplifts my balcony aesthetically? This is a very basic yet important start because this automatically puts you in a mindset where you are properly planning. From there, you should think about the foods you eat and if it will be sustainable to grow with your balcony’s orientations (see homepage for tips!). A tip: do not grow food that you don’t typically eat – what a waste of time. Grow foods or herbs you enjoy. If you decide to grow a flower garden, what colours do you love? Do you want fragrant flowers? Pre-planning will prevent you from planting too many varieties, which may become overwhelming.
Losing confidence
Becoming overwhelmed by your small urban garden can have side effects. When managing a garden proves to be a bigger task than expected, people are likely to lose confidence in their ability to keep one, consequently giving up. Giving up just once can be enough to rule out that you have a green thumb, which just isn’t true. It is not uncommon for crops or flowers to die; there can be many factors as to why this happens. If you analyse what is going on with your garden, you can most definitely succeed.
taking responsibility for your balcony garden problems
Growing a fruitful garden requires time and effort, less time if proactive. To indulge in the fruits of your labour is to understand that growing a garden becomes a responsibility. You will encounter pests, disease, and climate challenges – depending on where you are and what you desire to grow. Essentially, your garden becomes a small business operation that insists you are diligent in identifying hazards, assessing risks, placing controls and consistently evaluating. Approaching gardening with this mindset will prepare you for what’s ahead.
Know your plants
Now we see that growing a garden is like a small business operation; let’s talk about our products. Commonly, beginner gardeners tend to throw away the seed packets once they have sown their seeds into the soil – I, too, have been this reckless. This is problematic because not only does that packet have the instructions to successfully grow that plant, but it’s also what you’ll need to refer to when seeking additional information about your plant. Many plant species have very close cousins with exotic names – take it from someone who majored in biology. Ensuring that you don’t forget what plant cousin you have, keeping the tags and/or packets is important. Lastly, it is important to keep the tags and packets, but it is extremely important to read and comprehend the information on the packet (or tag) your seeds come in. If the care instructions are telling you that your seeds/plant like moist soil, letting it dry out will take your plant longer to flourish. If the care instructions are telling you to sow the seed 5MM shallow, plant them 5MM shallow. Plant seeds only have a set amount of energy stored inside, which feeds the shoot enough to break through the surface of the soil to expose the first leaves to the sun. Pay close attention to the care instructions.
Common balcony garden problems are going to occur. The best defense against balcony garden problems is preparedness. Treat your small urban garden like a small business operation, and you will be surprised how enjoyable and fulfilling it is when things are running smoothly.
references
- Balcony Garden Mistakes
- https://www.urbanplant.in/a/blog/post/how-to-fix-balcony-gardening-mistakes?srsltid=AfmBOorCaUR9CKDslBfd95bc6cY6vqM-YDJnQDr14WzWTPfL07GfYiKF
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=plsQbMGQ4oA
