My book (called My Balcony, My Garden: The complete guide to planning, potting, and growing an apartment garden, I don’t think I shared the title yet?) is going to include profiles of different balcony gardeners from across the country. My editor and I were thinking that it would be really fun (and helpful) to show photos of balconies from all sorts of different climates and hear from those balcony gardeners about the challenges and benefits of gardening in their region.
First, I made a Facebook page for My Balcony, My Garden. I would love to connect with people who want to hear about the book over there. I’m going to start photographing some local balconies for the book and I’ll be sharing a few pictures from those shoots. And I’ll share other “sneak peeks” of the book there too. Of course, once the book is published, I’ll use that page to let people know about book events and things like that. I hope you’ll also share ideas and photos there too.
That brings me to how your patio or balcony can be featured in My Balcony, My Garden. As I mentioned, I’m looking for beautiful, interesting apartment/condo gardens from several different regions. Have one of those? Share your best photo of your garden on the Facebook page or in the Life on the Balcony Flickr group. Be sure to include a little bit about yourself and your region.
Here are the regions I’m looking for:
- Pacific Northwest
- Mountain West & Midwest
- Southwest
- South
- Atlantic & North East
If your balcony is profiled in My Balcony, My Garden, I’ll send you a free copy of the book when it comes out so that you can see your garden in all it’s glory.
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{ 27 comments… read them below or add one }
How exciting Fern! I don’t have a balcony but just wanted to wish you well on your book journey.
How exciting! Best of luck with your book Fern! If you want any patio gardens from outside the US, let me know!
Thanks Jayme!
Laura–Let me talk with my editor and get back to you. Where in Canada do you live? What are the climate conditions there?
Hi,
I live in Southern California and I container garden on my front porch and would love to help you. I am also in the process of writing a book. I can email you pictures or whatever. Good luck!
I’m in the Greater Vancouver area, BC Canada. Zone 8.
Fern, I’m really excited that this project is coming to fruition … but I could only contribute a “before” photo …. what a really poorly gardened balcony looks like. Maybe I’ll learn to do better from your book. Can’t wait!
Congratulations Fern! Love the title and concept. It will be fun to follow your progress.
Congrats, Fern! This is going to be a great book. Like Laura, I’m in Canada (Vancouver, very similar to Seattle, climate-wise). We have mild summer and winter (rarely get snow). Don’t get fog, but the rain can be an issue for winter gardening. More plants succumb to being waterlogged than from cold temperatures. I’d be happy to chat more about this with you if you like – just let me know!
I live in the country…way back in the KY hills. My deck is on top of a sloping hill so it “feels” like a balcony. LOL I love your ideas on container gardening.
I have a “regular” garden, but grow herbs and a few tomatoes and peppers on the deck for easy access to the grill.
Did a couple of hanging pots one with Jamacian gherkins…which hopefully will do something now that it is cooling off some!
Here in Zone 6b (Southeast) the biggest container challenge this year has been getting enough water when the weather is scorching hot and overwatering with all the flood producing rains.
Was so scorching hot and planting time, some plants withered away. Then with second planting, we had a cool spell and they sat and sulked. It’s been a trying year!
(This has been our best ever year for Basil…takes a beating and keeps on growing!)
Hey Fern – Congrats. I don’t have a balcony, but would be happy to help with east coast/cold climate container advice.
Great start to promoting the book! Good luck!
Hello. Awesome idea for a book. I posted some photos of my Midwestern, Chicago, balcony garden.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/art_chel/4667249073/in/pool-lifeonthebalcony#/photos/art_chel/4667249073/in/pool-1036598@N20/
“How does a shorter growing season affect your garden?”
A shorter growing season has an effect on both my garden and on me. One noticeable effect on the garden is the division between cold weather and hot weather. There’s this feeling in the MW that we skip spring and go straight to summer. Meaning, as soon as we get out of winter’s freezing grip, we have a short cool spring and then get right into 80+ temps. So, the cold weather things like greens and peas start bolting and dying out pretty quick and make room for the tomatoes, cukes and eggplant. The effect that a short growing season has on me is that I feel like I’m much more in-tune with the seasons and the weather and race to make sure that everything is organized and planted on time. I have this feeling of wanting to take full advantage of the relatively short window.
“What do you do in the winter?” Dream about spring. Other than that, nothing. This year I have an aerogarden that I want to try out but that will be indoors. Seed starting will be indoors over the winter too. However, I do have a garden “on the ground” that I may try to push into the winter months.
“What plants really do well in containers in your area?” Plants do really well in containers in my area. I’m using sub irrigated planters made from pickle buckets, earthboxes and will be experimenting with grow bags made out of burlap potato sacks.
Got any tricks for dealing with wind? Wind is brutal. Especially on my balcony which is on the fourth floor of a large building with strong winds that hit my garden from all directions. I have nestled my garden into a corner with the hope that the concrete wall will protect the garden somewhat. Staking and tying plants is also very important. And I’m learning that knowing what not to grow is very important. I can’t seem to get vining plants, other than cucumbers, to grow very well. Pumpkin and zucchini do not want to grow on my balcony and I’m led to believe that they are too delicate for the winds.
I’ll put the word out to some people and see if I can find you a great NW balcony gardener for ya!
We could go on a SF balcony mission for you
I need to take the fancy camera with me when I’m on my watering routes… I see so much cool stuff that the iphone just can’t capture. I’d like to replant my wagon of succulents sometime soon too.
Thanks for the encouragement everyone. I love you guys!
Megan–That would be awesome, thanks!
Christina–Thanks, I appreciate it!
Art–Thanks for such an in-depth response, off to check out your photos!
Joyce–Great info, thanks!
Any plans to look at existing photos in the flickr group? i think i’ve already uploaded some of my favorite photos of my patio.
I’m so excited for you!!
Kimberly–Could you link me to them? I’m sorting through the Flickr group, but I want to be sure not to miss yours.
I’d love to take part… but I live in the UK.
Really looking forward to seeing the book tho – what a fab idea! <3
I just love your idea to do this–as I’ve JUST come in from outdoors taking pictures of my container balcony garden here in Chicago. I will be posting my pics for you to see! Good luck with your book
I’m so glad that you’ll be doing a book! I posted some pics on the facebook page, and you can visit my blog for more of my pseudotropical balcony. I just take the tender plants in when it freezes!
Great incentive to take some new pics of the balcony garden. I’m a novice urban gardener in Chicago and look forward to sharing my pics — as well as seeing pics from the other Chicago gardeners
Good luck with your book, Fern… cant wait to see it!!
Thanks for all the enthusiastic responses, I’m going through your photos and am really enjoying the process! Keep ‘em coming guys!
Posted some pictures of my balcony in Richmond, VA: http://www.flickr.com/photos/47855297@N06/4940216604/in/pool-lifeonthebalcony
My greatest challenge is keeping everything watered on a blazing hot balcony against brick walls. The heat does seem to extend my growing season in either direction. All of my perennial herbs survived the heavy snows we had this winter and I was able to start greens and sweet peas fairly early. I find that I use something grown on my balcony in almost every dinner I make.
Can it be from Canada?
hey, this is hot!
all the best for this project. i’ll keep a sharp lookout for the book. it’ll be no problem to get it in germany.
I live in Baltimore, in the Fells Point Area.
My deck over looks the Downtown area, and the outer part of the Harbor.
This is my first year trying to grow anything on my porch, so I started small. I had two tomato plants, some lavender, and parsley. We also had some small pots of flowers. Nothing
spectacular, but have already started making plans for next year!!
I’m lucky to get the full afternoon sun, and used some cat litter containers for the tomatoes, and regular clay small clay pots for the rest. Hauling water was a bit of a chore, but we used about
two to three 2 gallon containers every other day. Miracle grow spikes, and tomato food. I was a nice little work out, for my mom and I. It was nice to enjoy the view of the plants and the harbor, with the marina below us. We have a very good front row seat to the fireworks, for the Fourth of July!
Please keep us informed about your book, and project.
I feel so lucky to have found your site and fb page! Just moved to the San Francisco Bay Area, I am facing an absolutely blank small balcony and needing to find it beautiful and growing as soon as possible! I will be dealing with foggy summers, wind, hot beating sun since I’m across the bay from SF, when it’s not foggy, and mostly mild winters. I have a drip system, hanging soil pockets, and a couple of small espallied fruit trees on my definite list, already have a loveseat, and two urns, but have no idea yet what do put in for the trees…any ideas would be soo helpful.
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