If you’ve got homestead dreams on a rental budget, let me introduce you to apartment gardening. If you’re a millennial or Gen Z, odds are you don’t own a home but you might have the urge to grow food and herbs. Hello, same! Well, you can grow in containers and creating a thriving apartment garden. It may not be a super large scale setup, but it gives you practice and it can provide new ways for you to connect with the Earth and your food 💚
The best foods for apartment gardening
When growing food in a small space like an apartment, you want to prioritize things that grow well in containers. If you have a balcony you can absolutely put these outside for the summer. You can also just grow in front of sunny windows, or under grow lights!
Container Herb Garden
I absolutely LOVE growing herbs indoors in apartments because I use them so frequently. Adding fresh basil to pasta or salads, garnishing drinks with a sprig of fresh rosemary, or sprinkling fresh thyme into soup??? Alllll about it.
Sun: 6-8 hours
Water: When top 2 inches of soil is dry, about 2-4x per week
Best Herbs to Grow in Containers:
- Rosemary
- Basil
- Thyme
- Oregano
- Mint
- Chives
Grow Cherry Tomatoes in an Apartment Garden
While heirloom tomatoes can also be grown in containers, cherry tomatoes are faster to grow and more prolific. You can grow any cherry tomato variety. I personally love sungold tomatoes! Cherry tomatoes are perfect to pop on salads, toast, add to roasted veg dishes, or as a fresh addition to pasta.
Pro Tip: Double up on space by planting basil and oregano around the perimeter in the same container as your cherry tomato plant!
Sun: 6-8 hours
Water: Water deeply (until it runs out the bottom of the container) when top 2 inches of soil is dry
You can make sure the tomatoes are getting enough water, use a clay watering stake and an old wine bottle to drip water into the soil throughout the week.
Learn how to start your own apartment garden
Do you want to start an apartment garden but need some support on exactly what to do?
Check out my pay-what-you-can course that walks you through everything you need to know.
We’ve got inspiration on how you can grow your garden. We’ve got a step by step tutorial on how to start seeds. Always wondered how the heck you fertilize? We’ve got you covered with info for organic DIY fertilizers to my tried and true organic faves you can buy online. Plus, get a harvest guide and timeline planner!
Grow your confidence, and grow a garden 🌱
Grow Carrots in Containers
I swear, one of my favorite things in the world is pulling a carrot out of soil. The smell of beta carotene rushes straight to your nostrils, and I love all the variety of shapes you get! Just make sure your container is deep enough, you’re gonna want at least 12″-18″ of soil. I’ve gotten the best carrots when I have rich soil with plenty of organic compost (60/40 potting soil/compost). Plus, the green tops are edible and they look lush like a gorgeous houseplant!
Pro Tip: Only grow carrots from seed as they are super sensitive to disturbance and transplanting since they’re a root veg. Keep a moist paper towel or linen dishrag over the top of the soil until they germinate.
Sun: 6-8 hours
Water: Water deeply (until it runs out the bottom of the container) when top 2 inches of soil is dry
Edible Flowers for Apartment Gardening
I will put edible flowers on everything. My daily avocado toast, salads, smoothie bowls, buddha bowls, vegan ice cream, drink garnishes, desserts, you name it. I am obsessed. Plus, flowers just look so gorgeous as houseplants. Like nasturtium?? Gorgeous 6ft+ vines, fully edible, and imo I’d rather grow that than something like pothos.
Sun: 6-8 hours
Water: Water when top 2″ of soil is dry
Best Edible Flowers to Grow in Containers:
- Violet/Pansy
- Nasturtium
- Lavender
- Marigold
- Calendula
- Chamomile
Indoor Salad Garden
Growing greens in a container is a great way to have fresh, nutrient dense salads year round. I grow them in metal tubs or large bowl-shaped containers. A pot that is 12″-14″ wide, and 6″-8″ deep is great. Make sure you have rich organic vegetable gardening soil, or potting soil with plenty of organic compost.
Sun: 4-8 hours
Water: Water when top 2″ of soil is dry
Pro Tip: I like to have 2 salad garden bowls going at once, with seeds started 2 weeks apart for a more continuous harvest.
Best Greens to Grow in Containers:
- Lettuce
- Spinach
- Arugula
What you need to grow an apartment garden
Knowing which plants grow best in apartments is key. Some plants need pollination to produce fruit, and are better suited to outdoor gardening.
But greens, edible flowers, carrots, and herbs don’t need pollination.
Tomatoes self-pollinate within the same flower, so I always just recommend lightly shaking the stem when it’s flowering to ensure the pollen gets spread around. You can also just swirl a clean paintbrush on each flower if you want.
Get grow lights or make sure you get plenty of sun. If your apartment has windows that get 6-8 hours of direct sun per day, you can grow in that area without supplemental light. But if you get indirect sun, or less than 6 hours per day of direct sun, I would absolutely recommend getting a grow light.
You also will need some supplies. There are plenty of ways to DIY your setup, by starting seeds in eggshells, using pots and planters you already have, and making your own fertilizer. But if you want to go all out, here are the things I recommend.
Best Products for Indoor Gardening
- Rich, organic potting soil like this one from FoxFarm
- Organic fertilizer, like this one from Neptune’s Harvest
- Indoor garden setup with a grow light (crucial for anyone without 6+ hours of direct sun!)
- Large containers with a water reservoir (self-watering) at the bottom to ensure veggies have plenty to drink, like this one from Home Depot that also comes with a trellis
- Hydroponic wall farm with grow lights – this is not a necessity, but if you’re willing to spend and want an indoor garden that is next-level gorgeous and productive, I am absolutely obsessed 😍
I hope that this has been super helpful to you! I love growing food in containers in my apartment – indoors and on balconies. It makes me feel closer to nature, and I always think the food I grow tastes so much better than what you get in grocery stores.
Read more about Meant to Bea and Lindsey Beatrice
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