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You have a green thumb but limited outdoor space? No worries. There are thousands of alternatives. Well, not that many, but at least five or so. Don’t let lack of space deprive you of the opportunity to enjoy fresh strawberries, veggies and herbs, picked straight from your garden. No matter how small your place, you can find a way to grow plants. Here are a few tips to help you out.

Use your space wisely. If you have a small garden, you’ll have to grow only the plants you need the most. Make a list of the veggies and fruits you and your family like indulging in and limit your produce to the most essential. Plant tomatoes, cucumbers, strawberries, onions and potatoes. Add herbs if you have more space. If there are many more plants you want to grow, then you should be more creative. Check out the other tips.

Spread out of the garden. Why limit your green thumb to the garden? Take advantage of the nearby areas as well. For example, use pots to grow a variety of plants. That’s called container gardening and it allows apartment dwellers to grow plants without a garden. The best container gardening plants are some vegetables and citrus fruits such as oranges, limes and lemons. They love sunlight and they can be placed anywhere outdoors during summer.

Here are some vegetables that perform well in pots: tomatoes, squash, potatoes, peas, onions, radishes, peppers, lettuce, eggplant, cucumber, beans, beet, carrots, etc. But what to do if there is no garden at all? Keep reading. There is more.

Think vertically. Yet, if your patio is small and your space is limited, think about adding shelves to make the most out of your space. Add potted plants that you can’t grow in your garden because your space is limited.

You can use the exterior walls of your home. Grow flowers such as Australian native monstera, Wedding Vine, Dracaena, Limelight bower wattle, Sword Fern, Croton and others. Some of them require minimum care.

Use baskets. If you don’t have any outdoor space, then you should take advantage of your window sills. Make window boxes or use small baskets to grow your own veggies and fruits. Watch them grow all season long and use them for your favourite dishes. The advantage of growing produce by the window is that it will receive lots of sunlight every day.

Additional tips. If you grow veggies, herbs or fruits in containers, there are a few other things to bear in mind. First things first, you need to fertilise more. As your produce won’t have access to the nutrient-rich soil available for ground plants, you will have to spend more time fertilising. You will also want to select some high-quality soil.

Additionally, when growing in containers, think dwarf varieties; for example, squash, peppers, eggplant. Rather than planting vining tomatoes, opt for cherry tomatoes. You’ll see how much space it saves. At the same time, you will enjoy a full season’s worth of fresh and clean produce. And the last thing to keep in mind is your location. Choose an area that receives a minimum of six hours of sunlight a day. Don’t limit yourself to the side yard. Think balcony, deck, patio, windowsills, and so on and so forth.

The benefits of container gardening are many. Certainly, the biggest advantage is that it is easy to maintain.

Wish you happy planting.

The article is contributed by GardenersMates Peckham