#balcony gardening

[clatterbane]

The haul from a productive little journey to Blomsterlandet ("Flower Country") after work this evening. Plus some miscellaneous junk visible out in the balcony room, which is past due some spring garden cleanup!

My primary mission today was to pick up some tomato plants. It hopefully shouldn't be too early, since they are going in the glassed-in balcony area. No seeds started this year, and we do have the car now so it's much easier to haul all kinds of stuff around.

I grabbed two tomato plants, and this mystery vaguely banana pepper-looking variety to go into the three existing buckets.

I know the 'Totem' is supposed to be good in containers and heavy bearing for a smallish plant. Then I decided to stay sane for our current growing situation, and opted for this other bush tomato variety that I'd never heard of before.

But! Turns out that 'Vilma' has some other plans in mind.

That's it, that's how big the plants get. I like the cute little micro dwarves, and these are supposed to have a good flavor. But, somehow I think that the bucket will need to find another new occupant.

For now, at least, I think 'Vilma' will probably be better off moving up into one of these.

Besides the edibles, I also couldn't resist picking up these when I saw them.

A few unnamed African violets, and the lone Cape Primrose that I saw in the store. (Though, come to find out, these are apparently all classified as Streptocarpus now.) Not as wild about the pinks, but I'll take what I can get. All the Saintpaulias and Streptocarpus that I had (including the few luggage-smuggled from the UK) ended up dying for one reason or another, and I'm glad to get some more cheerful little blooming buddies in here.

Their new home in the living room for now. With that sad aloe and dracaena which needs some serious repotting. It's just staying too chilly in the balcony plant room still. (Which is what got most of the other ones.) Hopefully I will manage to keep these happier than the last ones!

[zombolouge]

Thought I'd share a pic of how my balcony garden is doing

The stand has a few plants that I don't know what they are bc they were just given to me, although top left is jasmine! There's also grape hyacinth, snapdragon, and daffodils in the hanging planter. Some violets and I think pansies down in the lower left, too.

I'm most excited about the big pots! A dwarf sweetheart cherry tree with a fuschia vine starter, then a blackberry and strawberry plant sharing a pot with some marigolds, and lastly a blueberry bush with a salvia and marigold for friendship.

I'm SO hyped to have all these berries. Not sure if they will fruit this summer (the tree def won't she's too new) but I'm pleased that they're all getting bigger and flourishing.

Also my lil cherry tree gave me a handful of flowers. I've been SO happy watching it grow. Here's a before pic from when I first brought it home:

And today:

And the flowers:

Sorry y'all I'm a plant nerd now so I might just have to do an excited yell abt them from time to time!

[glistenandgrow]

[skullchicken]

Today I planted the romaine lettuce from the supermarket I bought some odd weeks ago.

What it looks like:

What it feels like:

I got in the habit of putting leftover leafy veggies in water (spring onions, leek, romaine lettuce...) and these two surprisingly started sprouting some robust roots.

Turns out plants just keep growing if you put them in water. Wild.

When cutting the lettuce for meals I made sure to only use the upper 2/3rds of the outermost leaves and leave the stem and most of the leaves in the middle intact.

The pots above are for acclimatizing them from the window sill inside to the climate outside. If they take root, I'll move them to a balcony pot permanently.

Romaine lettuce thrives May to October (in German climate) in sunny conditions and I've wanted some "plucking salad" for a while now - so I'm very curious to see how they're going to hold up!

[randomberlinchick]

From my balcony 💐❤️💐

[pariahfox]

First haul of non-cherry tomatoes in!

Yeah, not many were ready yet, but it's something and more are near ripe now. I just ate one of them with a crack in the skin, and it definitely tasted like a ripe homegrown tomato. Probably get at least one on a sandwich later.

These are the 'Malinowy Ożarowski', btw. They're supposed to be the lighter pinkish color. Not the largest fruiting variety, but very much in the Northern European default "little round tomatoes" category, which are usually not bad if they are picked fully ripe.

[gher-bear]

[eternitas]

BRO MY FIRST HARVEST

[wannabe-british-fangirl]

In other news, I decided that I wanted some flowers to go on my balcony in addition to my tomatoes. I was figuring on a small container of marigolds, or geraniums perhaps.

What did I end up getting?

GOTH PETUNIAS.

Pictures really don't do these justice, they look just like black velvet!

[yardenercom]

Container Gardening: Perfect for Small Spaces

Lacking much space but wanting to add some greenery to your area? Growing plants in containers is the ideal solution! A thorough overview of container gardening is provided in our most recent blog post, along with advice on picking the best plants, soil, and container for your area. This article has everything you need to make a lovely and flourishing container garden, whether you're an experienced gardener or are just getting started. Check it out now to avoid missing out!

Visit for more at www.yardener.com

[clatterbane]

Yeah, I guess it wasn't too early to get those tomatoes going after all, even though it has still been getting down below 10C/50F some nights out there with a little supplemental heater action.

All three of the seeds from one of the previous tomato plants that I impulsively put in came up, and seem to be doing well--if growing sort of slowly for now. Waiting until they get a little bigger to make thinning decisions.

The 'Totem' seems to be happy enough there, and already started putting out some bloom buds.

Then there's 'Vilma'.

Some of those have started opening up already. I know other growers were saying that both of these do yield pretty much nonstop, but I really wasn't expecting the blooming to start up until it warms up some more in there.

[bebevonderbismarckquelle]

balcony-life

[copperrust]

the exact moment i can live alone i'm going to grow so many plants and vegetables where the sunlight can get. if i have a balcony it will be a garden

[glistenandgrow]

The weather has been so miserable this summer that I lost all motivation to care for my annuals long ago. There’s still plenty of time to reseed and give it another shot though. These cayennes are from 2020, my first year of container gardening on my balcony. I love this shot of them all in different stages of ripeness. 🌶

[gardenholic]

Want a Thriving Vegetable Garden on Terrace: Do These 5 Essential Steps

Welcome to the world of Gardenholic! Live better, Plant Better! In this blog post, we will embark on a green journey, exploring the Want a Thriving Vegetable Garden on Terrace: Do These 5 Essential Steps. In the hustle and bustle of busy life, a terrace vegetable garden is not just a hobby, but a sanctuary. It’s a place where you can grow your own food, reconnect with nature, and even reduce…

[randomberlinchick]

A work in progress 💐😊💐