7 Successful Ways to Garden with Limited Space

One of the main problems prospective gardeners face is attempting to garden with very little area to do so. It seems most plants need quite a bit of space to grow, but creativity definitely comes in handy when it comes to figuring out how to grow a healthy garden with little space.

Whether you have limited space to garden due to having little land on your property, are renting a home or apartment where gardening cannot be done, or have very little arable land to work with, you're in luck! There are several different ways you can have a successful garden, limited space and all.

Types of Gardening - Specifically Geared towards Limited Spaces:

1. Vertical Pallets

If you're looking to get a bit on your creative side, try vertical pallet gardening! Vertical pallets are simple, trendy, and pleasing to eye. The goal of vertical pallets is to get plants to grow upwards instead of outwards, which as you can imagine saves quite a bit of space!

These vertical pallets can then be hung on a house or on a fence (shown above this paragraph) or even propped against a wall or fence (shown below this paragraph on the left).

Some vertical pallets are build with "feet" or legs on them (shown below this paragraph in the image on the right) or have two pallets that are built back-to-back in an upside-down v-shape (shown in the image to the right of this paragraph), so they can freely stand up on their own. There are literally dozens of ways to design a vertical pallet garden; you'd be amazed. Interested in vertical pallet gardening? Check out this link on instructions to create your very own vertical pallet!

2. Shoe Organizers

If you like the idea of vertical pallet gardening but aren't able to get your hands on a pallet to create your own or would prefer something already made, try shoe organizer gardening, aka 'pocket gardening.' All you need is, well, a shoe organizer and some potting soil, and of course plants, and viola, you've got yourself a nifty vertical garden!

Unlike vertical pallets, though, shoe organizers have to be hung and cannot be propped up at an angle against a wall, unless, that is, you nail your shoe organizer to a wooden flat, for instance.

3. Towers

Another similar yet different concept as vertical pallets are gardening towers. The plants growing in this type of gardening technique again will grow upwards, though the concept itself is quite different considering it's done in a vertical, 360 degree tower.

If you want to go all out, you can make one similar as the ones pictured, or you can make one out of a PCV pipe or out of a bucket, shown here. Not into the vertical style? Try a horizontal tower found here.

4. Shelves

If you're a potted plant type of grower but have little space to place your pots, keep them on a waterproof shelf, specifically an affordable yet sturdy garage shelf, which can be found for approximately $20-50 on average in a heavy-duty plastic material with holes. Try to stay away from shelves made from metal or shelves without holes, otherwise water will sit and rot the plants.

5. Containers

Possibly one of the simplest of ways to garden in a small space is to resort to container gardening. The thing with containers is that they can easily be moved around. Bring them indoors, or leave them on your porch or patio if you wish or even hang them. This method is especially vital when it comes to dealing with frost, heavy rain, and other conditions easier to deal with container gardens than with a traditional garden.

Another plus of container gardening is you'll have less pests (ie. gophers), though a downside is that the natural elements of soil are not prevalent in container gardens, and aeration is not as available since there are no earthworms in containers as there are in the ground, which is why it's important to use a potting mix soil for container gardening, filled with nutrients and of course perlite to help with the aeration process.

Several small pots can be used, or a large pot combined with various herbs will do just fine. You could even combine a tower garden with a container garden technique by making (or buying) your own tower of pots, placing plants in each level. Be sure to research which plants grow best with one another and if the pot is large enough, so the plant(s) can grow happily without becoming root-bound and cramped. Especially keep trailing/spreading plants in their own pot, so they don't crowd out other plants.

Radishes, carrots, beets, and other root plants are especially ideal for container gardening as they require fairly little space. Many herbs do well in smaller pots as well. If you're looking to container garden with veggies, there are several varieties of vegetable plants out there specifically designed for containers - Zucchini, cucumber, and tomatoes are just a few that have container versions. We sell container varieties at our booth as well.

6. Window Boxes

A subcategory of container gardening would be window boxes. They're pretty much the same idea, only that they're attached to the outside of a window. If container gardening is your thing, combine window box gardening with containers for the ultimate limited-space gardening experience!

In general, window box gardening is simple yet stunning. It gives your home a bit of character, combining both decoration with your love for gardening. With a window box garden, it's fun to take a peek out your window to watch your healthy plants grow day-by-day. Plus, if frost is an issue, your window boxes will be closely nestled to your home radiating heat onto your window planters and avoiding light to moderate frost.

7. Raised Planter Boxes

When raised planter beds are not in the picture, especially if you are renting a home where landscape cannot be altered, raised planter boxes are the next best thing. They closely mimic a raised planter bed, but instead are not permanent as they have legs and therefore can easily be moved around or taken out if needed. They're certainly not as much as a commitment as a traditional garden bed.

Another plus of raised planter boxes is that they're raised much higher than the average raised planter bed, making it easy to harvest, plant, and maintain your garden all while avoiding various pests or having to bend over just to tend your garden.

As you can see, gardening can be done in a variety of ways! Don't let limited space hold you back from having a productive garden.

Why not give some of these ideas a go? Even if you have plenty of room for gardening, you may find that you can never have too much room for having a healthy garden, not to mention that some of these space-saving gardening ways are as beautiful and unique as they are effective. Many of these ideas are actually quite easy and frugal, regardless of their seemingly complexity. You just have to be creative! There are many online tutorials and even videos online demonstrating how to create these types of gardens.

Surely, you could probably think of many other ways after reading this article to grow a garden in limited space. The goal should be, though, to either garden upward as opposed to outward (ie. vertical pallets) or to create a garden that can be moved around (ie. containers) or off of the ground (ie. window boxes). Good luck!

Photo Credits:
http://www.livinglocurto.com/2012/06/pallet-flower-garden/
http://inoustudio.com/vertical-pallet-garden/vertical-pallet-garden-pallet-community-garden-fix/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/141230138288637948/
http://www.tinadalboge.dk/boligindretning/paller-2
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/90986854941397899/
https://www.pinterest.com/pin/414542340680175489/
http://wonderfuldiy.com/wonderful-diy-vertical-garden-pyramid-planter/
http://www.guide-to-houseplants.com/growing-lettuce-indoors.html
https://bonnieplants.com/container-gardening/
http://www.hyanniscountrygarden.com/window-box-ideas/
http://shawnacoronado.com/container-garden-tower-pyramid-build/
http://www.amazon.com/PHAT-TOMMY-Elevated-Planter-Box/dp/B00BLAZHHY
http://napawoodworks.com/product/zinfandel-raised-bed-planter/