Guest blog: Top five tips for gardening in small spaces

Whether you have a windowsill, balcony or courtyard, there are a host of ways you can turn your small spaces into thriving and sustainable gardens.

This is the message from the Canberra Environment Centre to people attending the City Renewal Authority’s seasonal plant giveaways.

Our organisations recently teamed up to help Canberrans – particularly those who live in apartments and townhouses – re-home the seasonal flowers and plants that bring beauty to our City Centre.

Sign up to receive a notification about the next giveaway.

Read on for advice on you can develop your green thumb, no matter how much space you’re working with.

Tips for gardening in small spaces from the Canberra Environment Centre

1. Choosing plants: What do you really love eating? It may seem obvious, but we are more motivated to care for edible plants we really enjoy! Think fresh herbs, leafy greens and cherry tomatoes – yummo. The Canberra Environment Centre has a wealth of helpful online resources too.
2. Light: Plants need sunlight. Observe how much (or little) sunlight your space is soaking up. A windowsill, balcony or courtyard can all be great growing spaces with enough light. Leafy greens can tolerate a fair bit of shade whereas fruiting plants love the sun and will need at least six hours of sunshine.
3. Soil nutrients: Invest in good quality potting mix for pots and raised garden beds – it’s worth the extra outlay. Consider the addition of a worm farm – they’re great small space composters and provide free fertiliser to improve soil nutrients and keep plants pumping.
4. Water: Self-watering wicking pots can be super helpful to keep plants hydrated, especially over a hot Canberra summer. There are plenty of ways to get creative and upcycle materials to make your own, from repurposed milk containers to larger-scale pots – get creative while keeping plants happy this spring.
5. Don’t give up: Don’t despair over a ‘failure’ or two. Growing plants is a lifelong joy and challenge even for the most experienced growers. The failures make the successes (and the eventual cherry tomatoes) even more sweet!

Visit the Canberra Environment Centre website for more information, resources, upcoming workshop dates and more.

This article was developed together as an ongoing resource following the 13 September flower and plant giveaway in Braddon. This giveaway saw the City Renewal Authority partner with the Canberra Environment Centre, who attended to provide gardening tips and advice to those in attendance.

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