I’m hoping next year to try to grow a few plants on my apartment’s deck. It’s half sun and I live in a temperate area where I’ve had family grow tomatoes, potatos, peas, beans, etc.
I feel like any fruit or veg that can grow on a trellis should, in theory, work. Anyone have any lived experience to share? I’m not terribly good with plants, so I also ask the question “should a novice tackle this kind of project”?
tomatoes are pretty fickle, so you may have an easier time with something else, but generally it is doable. if possible, look for varietals bred for container-growing, as they’ll often be smaller plants. I’ve never grown peas or beans myself but I bet green beans and various peppers would be good choices.
of course, familiarize yourself with your environment. determine your plant hardiness zone: https://www.fs.usda.gov/wildflowers/Native_Plant_Materials/Native_Gardening/hardinesszones.shtml and growing seasons. as others said, the direction your deck faces is important, but since you’re in an apartment, you may actually have an advantage of being able to utilize reflected light from the building facing you as well. (I used to have a north-facing deck and the brick wall opposite me was a major source of light for my plants, which would sometimes reach toward it)
Thank you for the tips! I have reading to do! I have seen those “as seen on tv” tomato hangers for years, so I was under the misunderstanding they were hearty.
I’m not an expert, but tomatoes can get blight easily and require a ton of sun and water to produce fruit (but they also need great drainage!)
Definitely glad I’m giving myself a year to plan! I swear I can grow something here. I want it to be productive, maybe I’ll end up doing some native flowers?
native flowers are a great idea! I’m lazy and mostly grow “decorative” plants - but even though they don’t feed me, they’re habitat for creatures I love
We have some local small seed eating birds and some crows that live here and they like to come grab my dog’s hair after I brush her off on the porch, so maybe there’s something they would like. I don’t want to do just seeds and encourage too much hanging out! I don’t want all the poo.