Essential Tips for Urban Gardeners

There is much to appreciate in city life: the gastronomic experiences, the vibrant culture, and a close proximity to all your favorite destinations. However, one thing remains lacking – access to green spaces. Aside from a few maples lining parkways, there are limited areas where large expanses of greenery can be found.

With societal ills such as food deserts, poverty, and crime plaguing neighborhoods, urban gardens can be seen as a boon. In a land with a dearth of food and water, urban gardens act as substance, injecting much-needed greenery into the landscape. Urban gardening is a broad term that encompasses anything from apartment balconies to communal plots where residents can cultivate land.

As with every gardening endeavor, the tools needed are ritualistic – a spade, soil, and a vessel to house plants in. Once you plan the appropriate location, it’s time to pick up the shovel and begin.  

1. Grow in Raised Garden Beds         

Urban landscapes suffer from a lack of soil, but what seems like a drawback can be a positive. To successfully cultivate their crops, many gardeners turn to raised beds or containers. Though the initial investment may be costlier, raised beds are great for urban gardening because they’re no-till, can pretty much grow anything, and can be rolled inside during the winter. For even greater convenience, set up an herb garden in your own kitchen. Make the most of your kitchen space by growing herbs in indoor planters, which can accommodate even the smallest of areas. 

2. Grow Vertically   

Overgrown lots and narrow corridors, commonly decried as another symptom of the concrete jungle, are actually fertile ground for improvement – areas where the vegetation nicely complements the industrial facade. Vines can be trained to climb on walls for a charming, whimsical look, and wispy wildflowers and ornamental grasses planted underfoot to emulate the feel of a fairytale. Add trellises to modular raised beds to maximize growing space; stylish racks can be used to cluster multiple plants of varying lengths. 

3. Branch Out into Exotics                  

The big city can seem like the last place to cultivate lush exotics, but the warmth and shelter derived from the populous crowds proves conducive to succulents, cordylines, and other exotic plants that would otherwise not survive. Raised beds, which warm up faster, create the ideal environment for tropics to thrive. These with glossy, variegated leaves, and interesting textures like Aeonium Arboreum 'Zwartkop' will make the biggest impact, transforming a dull terraced wall into a tropical oasis with little effort.  

4. Compost Food Scraps      

In the city, dirt that is not compacted or of poor quality is hard to come by. But now, with vermicomposting, making dirt is no longer confined to traditional compost bins – dubious vats teeming with hazardous materials. Conscious city dwellers can now bury a worm composter within their raised beds, toss in their kitchen refuse, and within three months, discover a new layer of replenished soil. It’s hassle-free, and more importantly, relatively odorless. Kitchen scraps, coffee grounds, and grass clippings can all be added to the worm composter, which harnesses the digestive power of worms to turn waste into rich compost. 

5. Wisely Combat Weeds 

Weeds are an inevitable part of gardening, and even urban gardeners aren’t spared. While most weeds are eliminated with raised beds, the more pernicious will persist, poking through the soil come spring. A layer of mulch can stifle weed seeds and suppress their spread, but for existing weeds, a hori hori knife should do the job. 

6. Work with Your Neighbors  

Depending on your luck, neighbors can either be a menace or a blessing. There’s always the unpleasant shut-in that blasts loud music at all hours of the night. However, if you’re lucky, you might find that your next-door neighbor shares like-minded interests, such as podcasting and true crime, as did the inhabitants of the Arconia in Only Murders in the Building. Neighbors with a shared interest in gardening can lessen the load together, offering tips, tools, and solutions to tricky problems. Search online for any nearby community gardens and see if you can help out. 

7. Select Hardy but Attractive Plants    

It’s important to select plants that don’t require much upkeep or space. This may include dwarf or compact varieties of vegetables, or hardy perennials such as goldenrod. Use lush, leafy plants such as elephant ears and banana trees to lay the groundwork and create hidden areas. Many traditional cottage garden plants like foxgloves and delphiniums bear eye-catching blooms. In other cases, potted plants such as hostas and Agapanthus can fill out areas lacking in color. 

8. Start Small

Many beginner gardeners make the mistake of being too ambitious, only to have their plans thwarted. Start small with easy to grow flowers, then incrementally add onto your display. The limited space means that you’ll need to pay extra attention to design elements and environmental factors that can affect growth – growing zones, spacing, and sunlight. Shallow rooted crops like lettuces tend to fare better than those with deeper root systems. 

9. Stick to One Theme 

Rather than buying flowers on a whim, it can help to plan out your garden according to a theme, whether that be a tropical oasis or a goth garden. Intriguing planters with funky designs can enhance the overall look, adding a lot of depth. Additionally, gravel, commonly seen in Mediterranean gardens, is an inexpensive way to delineate paths and eliminate lawns. 

10. Take Advantage of Structural Elements 

Urban spaces tend to be surrounded by tall fences and other buildings. The shadows cast by these buildings present an opportunity to grow shade-dwelling plants. Structure your plants to cascade naturally around tiered steps or other architectural elements. Older buildings often have historical features that add to the character of your garden. Weathered cobblestones winding around a garden lot create a sense of formality while lending an Old World atmosphere. Raised beds, whether corrugated planters in earthy shades or rectangular beds lacquered in black tones, can be easily integrated into the framework of the building without seeming intrusive.