Vegetables require similar care to decorative plants. but, in addition to being pretty, they are eaten. That is why they are proliferating urban gardens in pots. There are many reasons to start growing your own vegetables at home:

• With the garden, in addition to producing food, we seek to regain contact with nature and experience the satisfaction of harvesting and eating what you have cared for with your hands. Allows you to have a small amount of fresh food grown without pesticides and fertilized in an ecological way.
• Is an activity within everyone’s reach, all you need is an outdoor space Where to put some pots: balconies, terraces, patios and even a window sill can work. Observing the cycle of life pacifies the spirit, contact with nature relaxes and helps to see problems in their proper measure.
• It is an activity suitable for people of all ages. The garden is a game for children: They love to put their hands in the soil, water the plants, harvest the fruits and, of course, eat them. They learn good eating habits and that fruits and vegetables are not born on supermarket trays but rather need care to develop. If they are in charge of watering the garden, they will learn to be responsible and will feel proud to collaborate.

What does it take to set up a garden at home? What is better to plant in pots? How to grow to obtain good results? We explain it to you below.

Pots and planters to grow vegetables at home

The pots They should be as large as possible, although some vegetables such as lettuce or onions can grow well in small pots as long as they do not lack water.

In general, you should look for containers with a depth between 20 and 40 cm so that the roots can develop well.

The best results are obtained with large pots or planters since They maintain more constant humidity and the roots overheat less.

The White pots are ideal for summer since they keep the roots cooler while those of black colorwhich absorb heat from the sun, are more suitable for the cold months.

With a little imagination you can recycle many containers to use as flower pots: water jugs, old bathtubs, laminated fabric supermarket bags… The only thing you need to do is make some holes in the bottom to facilitate drainage.

The pots should be filled with fertile soil; are normally used mixtures of peat or coconut fiber with fertilizers such as manure, worm castings or bird guano. These substrate mixes are especially suitable for container planting as they are high in nutrients and have a high water holding capacity, which reduces the need for irrigation and ensures that vegetables have all the food they require.

Containers and growing tables

The cultivation tables They allow you to plant a wide variety of vegetables in a small space. Even the elderly or people with mobility problems They can work on them.

These tables are filled with a very nutritious substrate mix, usually composed of coconut fiber and vermicompost (the humus that worms produce when digesting organic matter and one of the most complete ecological fertilizers).

Discover the advantages of having a garden at home in the following video.

The 3 basic ingredients: sun, irrigation and fertilizer

The secret to achieving rapid growth is that the plants do not lack any of the three elements they need: water, light and nutrients.

the sun

It is the basic element, without it there is no growth. In general, south orientation is preferred because the more daily hours of sun the terrace has, the better the plants will grow. Fruits, especially tomatoes and peppers, produce very little if they do not have abundant sunlight.

But If the balcony faces north there is no need to be discouraged either.. Although they grow more slowly, it is also possible to grow vegetables. The vegetables that survive best on terraces With few hours of sun they are usually the leaf ones and the root ones: spinach, celery, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, lettuce, turnip, leek, radish, chard, endive, broad beans, peas, strawberries and many aromatics such as parsley, cilantro, mint, basil and oregano.

Irrigation

It is the main care that a garden needsespecially when the plants grow in pots, where the amount of moisture available is much less than on the ground.

In spring and autumnunless it rains, plants need watering every two or three days, while In summer, watering should be daily.

A good idea is to install a drip irrigation system and connect it to the tap using a programmer Turn on the water for a while each day. Plants regularly receive what they need, water is saved and freedom is gained.

Fertilizers

There is little room for soil in a pot and, unless we have prepared a substrate extremely rich in nutrients, It will probably be necessary to add some fertilizer during the growing cycle.

The solid ecological fertilizerssuch as manure, guano, compost or worm castings, They are usually mixed with the substrate when filling the pots. If it is necessary to add more during growth, they are simply spread over the soil and the irrigation water is responsible for carrying the nutrients to the roots.

The liquid fertilizers are provided dissolved in the irrigation water and its effect is faster although of shorter duration.

Healthy, well-fed plants show deep green leaves But when nutrients are scarce, the green color becomes lighter, and can reach, if the deficiency continues, even yellow.

Monitor the color of the plants and increase the frequency of fertilization if the leaves become too light.

What is better, seeds or seedlings?

Nowadays, with the proliferation of urban gardens, most garden stores sell vegetable seedlings, which avoids having to plant from seeds. Seedlings are purchased ready to be transplanted and start growingwhich shortens the duration of the process by one or two months.

Still there is some vegetables that continue to be planted from seeds: carrots, radishes, turnips, sunflowers, beets… Of course, if you want to grow an unusual variety, you will have to resort to seeds, since seedling sellers usually only have the most common ones available.

What to plant in an urban garden: the easiest vegetables to harvest

• Radishes are harvested only a month after sowing them. For your small size They can be grown alongside slow growing vegetables such as carrots or tomatoes as they will be harvested before the space is needed.
• Lettuce grows quickly in good weather and when planting seedlings, they are harvested between one and two months later.
• Arugula is another fast growing plant and its nutty flavor, much more noticeable freshly harvestedgives a different touch to any dish. Spread on a freshly baked pizza it is simply spectacular.
• Carrots are grown from seedsjust spread them on the moist soil and cover them lightly. They need little fertilizer and take advantage of nutrients that may remain after having harvested another vegetable.
• Potatoes can be planted in potsalthough achieving good production is not easy, since it is a crop with very high nutrient needs: It is advisable that the substrate contains at least one third of manure or worm castings. In any case they are very Easy to grow from any sprouting potato.
• The tomatoes. Few vegetables are as tasty as a freshly picked ripe tomato. For many gardeners, harvesting tomatoes is their greatest desire. It is not the easiest vegetable to grow and usually requires preventive treatments against fungi.especially powdery mildew and mildew.
  The most common ecological treatment consists of spray the plants with cupric sulfate, a natural fungicide based on copper and sulfur that prevents the attack of both species of fungi. Peppers, eggplants, potatoes and zucchini also benefit with the application of sulfur and copper.
• Some climbing vegetables such as cucumbers, beans or peas they need supports. Tomatoes too, although you have to tie them to stakes because they don’t tangle themselves.
• Zucchini is one of the most appreciated vegetables as long as you have a large pot. When it grows in fertile and abundant soil it can produce a zucchini every two or three days throughout the summer.
• Sunflowers grow easily and children love roasted pipes.

How to take advantage of space in a home garden?

The main limitation of urban gardens is usually spaceunless you have a large roof terrace. Most people only have a balcony or a small terrace.

It is difficult for a balcony garden to cover the weekly needs for vegetables, although its products are the star of many dishes. To increase production, it is necessary to sharpen ingenuity

To achieve maximum vegetable production it is advisable make good use of the environment and give up growing slower growing vegetables or that require more space.

• While some radishes take a month to grow and lettuce, chard, cabbage and peas for about two months, Tomatoes, peppers and eggplants need at least three months to start producing.
• Dried onions require almost five months but those that are consumed fresh are ready after two and a half months.

Share pot

Different vegetables can be grown together on growing tables, planters and large pots. to save space, although mixing varieties that compete for the same nutrients should be avoided.

If we classify vegetables based on the part that is consumed, we would have to combine root, leaf, fruit and flower plants, since they need different nutrients and do not compete too much. What you should avoid is planting two vegetables of the same type together.

Replenish

Among slow-growing vegetables such as cabbages, you can plant fast plants such as lettuce or radishes. that take advantage of the free spaces while the cabbages grow.

Every time a plant is harvested, a new one is replanted. in the gap, that way the terrace can continuously provide vegetables.

Two levels

Some plants like tomatoes, peas, cucumbers or strawberries can be grown in hanging pots letting stems and fruits hang freely. This system allows a greater number of plants to be grown in the same space, some at ground level and others above.

Fill your balcony with aromatic plants

Many aromatic plants need abundant sun and tolerate heat very well. of summer even with little watering: sage, lavender, thyme, marjoram, oregano, rosemary.

Others like mint, parsley, basil, cilantro and chives They will grow better with a little more water and even in semi-shade

The laurel is a larger shrub and needs a bigger pot but it lasts for many years and can be pruned to control its growth.

Another option is to grow vertically, for which you will need to choose an appropriate vertical garden structure and combine the…