If you’re thinking about planting flowers in your balcony, it’s a good idea to look through Pinterest’s balcony plant catalog. That will give you plenty of options for plants and textures to use. Just one quick click of your mouse and you can have dozens of ideas in your fingertips. Some apartment owners choose not to use flowers at all. Others prefer to decorate with plants and flowers throughout their apartment.
Before you start apartment gardening, make a list of the plants you’d like to grow. Don’t forget to take into account what kind of container you’d like to use. Keep in mind that many flowering plants need a lot of room to grow. If your balcony is long and narrow, taller plants may dominate the area. Use this handy guide to help you decide on the plants you need to get started:
Whether you live on the second or first floor, you should keep in mind that there are different kinds of plants that are suited for different temperatures. For example, some plants like the sun, while others prefer shade. Choose plants that you can enjoy both ways. You’ll also want to buy plants that are in season, so you can enjoy them even if you don’t have an apartment on the ground floor. Here are some of the plants you might consider if you’re planning to use apartment gardening this year:
Grape Vines This is one of the best choices for plants used in an apartment balcony. They’re easy to care for, and they’re very pretty. They can be planted on the left or right of your apartment’s balcony railing. Most varieties can survive temperatures of -40 degrees Fahrenheit, so they’re great to have in the kitchen. And since they’re easy to move, you can take them with you if you move.
Fennel Stalks These are easy to grow plants, especially if you’re looking for something exotic or surprising. Fennel is very common in most kinds of home gardens, but you’ll probably notice a difference in the fennel that’s offered at a nursery. Since it’s used in Italy, it tends to be very fragrant, and it goes well with many other apartment gardening themes.
Dogwood Plants If you’re going for a really elegant look, then Dogwood should be a mainstay in your balcony. It will add a lot of class and tradition to the balcony space. If you have a balcony that overlooks a view, then dogwood would be a good choice. It’s also a good idea to make sure that you prune them regularly, because they don’t like being cut too short. However, if you’re just renting an apartment, you’ll probably only get to trim a couple of them every two or three weeks, and they’ll do fine.
Ivy This is an old favorite of mine, and it’s one of my favorites because it’s so versatile. They’re small, but they’re also tough, so they can survive even the toughest attacks from birds and bugs. One thing that people tend to not think about when it comes to ivy is how hard it is to keep them looking beautiful. You can’t just throw a bunch of these plants into any sort of soil, and they will usually die within a few months unless you do certain things. Some types of ivy, such as the one in the Pohutukawa style nursery, can live in both wet and dry conditions, but I personally prefer a mix of wet and dry for better growth and color.
Most of the plants that you might want to use on your balcony all fall into one of three categories: shrubs, vines, or ground cover plants. If you’re planning on an apartment balcony, shrubbery and vines are the best choices, as they won’t be competing with your other plants for limited light and water. If you have ground cover plants, then some sort of bark or wood will probably do just fine.