Urban Container Gardening – Here We Go!

When I was little, we’d  travel from the beach to visit my family in the mountains, a lot. I especially remember the anticipation of going to stay with my Grandma in the summer because her food was so good! I didn’t realize it then, but all that good cookin’ starts from good fresh fruits & veggies. She had an amazing, huge garden.

Today, she still talks about me when I was ‘knee high’. She says that as soon as I got to her house, I’d come in and say, “Can we go down to the garden, granny?!” I’d count the rows of corn and beans. I still remember sitting on the porch shelling peas ’til dusk, then we’d chase lightning bugs. . . I was a happy, happy camper. [So much nostalgia!]

The green thumb clearly made an imprint on my heart. Last summer I was blessed to have enough space and good lighting for a garden. Granted, it was a 4×4 square foot garden – but I definitely made the most out of it! It had an awesome tomato plant, carrots, onions, peppers, [I gave corn a shot – but that was a tough one], strawberries, arugala, basil, dill, cilantro.. I can’t even remember what else – but I loved it. From construction, to planting, to growing, to harvesting, it was honestly perfect.

My garden in it”s earlier stages… Later on down the road it was much bigger and more fruitful!

Unfortunately, due to a relocation I won’t be able to replant that garden this summer. That’s OK, though. The Silver Lining to it: I get to try container gardening this year!

I’ve read a ton of posts, blogs, books and done a lot of research about a proper container garden. I’m fortunate to be able to use Nick’s back patio as my testing ground because the best my apartment has to offer is  a gravel parking lot full of cars! :-)

I hope to post pictures soon of the beginnings of this container garden and chronicle its growth. The area I’ll be growing in has partial shade though during the day, so I’m not so sure how well it’ll go this time. I actually plan on moving after graduation, so I’m making “good growing space” a criteria for my next place!

Either way, I’m so grateful for the warm weather and the ability to have plants at all. I’m blessed to have had such a great family who puts such an emphasis on growing food, eating well and loving one another!

If you have any ideas, tips or insight to container gardening (especially when shade is involved), let me know – I’d love to connect!