To provide women with information on gardening and growing Vegetables on the Terraces.
- Begin with simple steps and then let your idea become bigger and bigger. Planters or pots are best for terrace garden. Get a pot from market or search your home to get any containers and recycle it. Cover the drainage hole at the bottom with stones so that there is space for the water to flow but no soil is discharged.
- Use a high-quality organic potting soil and augment it with compost.
- Layer plants that bloom at different times on top of one another in containers–and fertilize once a month.
- If your terrace is sturdy enough to support the weight, cover the floor with filter fabric and a shallow layer of gravel so plants can self-sow and naturalize.
- Study how sunlight moves across the space over the course of a day and cluster your containers–sun lovers vs. woodland plants–in areas where they will thrive.
- Clustering pots makes it easier to water plants efficiently. Most containers will dry out and need water every day; during a heat wave, water twice a day.
- Make your peace with pests. If squrrels dig up a pot in the course of burying an acorn, be happy you’ve created a wildlife habitat in the city.
- Plant a pollinators’ favorites to attract bees and butterflies. “It’s lovely to see them up here,” says Viljoen.
- Herbs are the easiest edibles to grow in containers.
- Some fruits also are surprisingly easy to grow in containers too: blueberries, for instance, and currants. “A lot of people are surprised by the success of my fig tree,” says Viljoen.
- Vines and fast-growing climbers are good for a small space because they will lend vertical interest quickly.
