Last summer we lived in a rented house shared with my sister. We had a decent yard space, with a little area fenced off behind the garage that was perfect for a garden. It was my first time gardening, and it was a lot of fun. It was also a lot of work! I loved it though, and it provided much fresh produce and herbs throughout the season, plus some food to preserve for the winter.

Corn in my first garden

I grew a sexy lady carrot! I pickled her with some cucumbers and she was delicious!

Heirloom tomatoes and romano beans

This summer me and Ve live in an apartment, but I didn’t want to give up on gardening. All winter long I missed being able to go outside and pick dinner. I missed the fresh tomatoes, I missed snips of fresh, organic herbs in most of our meals, so I decided that I would grow what I could on my balcony.

The balcony is fairly large, for an apartment, and faces south. We live on the third floor with no other buildings close by blocking the sun. I’m starting some from seeds, and I bought some seedlings. To save space, I made these hanging upside-down planters for tomatoes and cucumbers and some herbs.

Empty upside-down planter

Basil

Mexican Midget tomatoes and basil

I ran out of small planters to start seeds in, so I decided to keep going with the idea of reusing empty plastic bottles by cutting them in half and using each piece as a planter. I’m not sure how it’s going to work, but I’m hoping for the best. These are flowers, but I have a few with herbs and tomato seeds too. I found some left-over seeds from last year, and I put those in empty egg cartons.

White Rose Campion

Herb seeds in an egg carton

Growing directly in the ground, I didn’t need to use fertilizer. I had prepared the soil for planting last year, turning it and mulching it, so the plants could take what they needed from the soil. Plants growing in containers need to be fed so I’m using fish emulsion. The stuff really stinks, but from what I’ve read it’s a great organic option, the smell doesn’t linger and they only need to eat twice a month.

Wish me luck! I plan on writing about my garden all season long, so check back in to see how it’s doing ♥