How to Build a Small Patio Garden

There are a wide variety of containers you can use for your small patio garden. The important things to remember are to select water-resistent containers that have drainage holes in the bottom. You can choose from clay flower pots, small pots or buckets, barrels sawed in half, hanging baskets and even cinder blocks! If you are really ambitious, you could purchase or construct raised beds and planters. Use your imagination! Just make sure that the containers are easily accessible and convenient for planting, weeding and other garden tasks.

A good planting medium is vital to the success of your small patio garden. Don't use the soil from your yard or flower garden. Instead you should invest in some good planting medium from your local gardening store or greenhouse. A good gardening medium will be lighter than regular soil and will not compact when wet. It is important for the success of your garden to have loose soil so that your plants' roots will be properly aerated.

Now comes the fun part--choosing what to grow in your small patio garden! In the beginning, start slowly and limit your choices to just a few plants. Then as you become more experienced and confident, you can expand the size of your garden as well as the choices of plants. Consult with your local nursery for advice on plants which will be appropriate for your location--average daily temperatures and hours of sunlight are important to the types of plants you will be able to grow in your small patio garden.

I suggest that you start with a combination of herbs and vegetables. Choose vegetable plants that will give a high yield and take up little space, i.e. leaf and salad crops plus those that can be trained vertically. Miniature varieties of vegetables are especailly suited to small containers. I suggest you consider growing vegetables such as tomatoes, lettuce, cucumbers, carrots and peppers.

In addition to vegetables, culinary herbs should be considered as they not only can be used in the preparation of food, but can be decorative as well as offer pleasant fragrances to your garden. Among the herbs you can consider are thyme, parsley, garlic, oregano and tarragon. Again, consult with your local nursery or gardening center for the plants appropriate for your climate.

A small patio garden offers a multitude of benefits to you and your family. In addition to the prospect of fresh vegetables and herbs which will taste so much better than those purchased in a grocery store, the garden can be a learning and educational project for the whole family. Both adults and children can participate in the selection, planting and tending of the garden. And, most important, it can be FUN for the whole family!!