Micro Gardening

The hottest new trend is micro gardening, also referred to as urban gardening, this way of growing food is great for people who live in big cities and have a limited amount of outdoor space.

Micro gardening is great for people who only have access to a balcony, patio, or rooftop. It is a great way to grow herbs, vegetables, or other vegetation for your consumption.

What Is Micro Gardening

Many eco-friendly people use micro gardening as a way to provide food for their families, but it is also a great hobby to relieve stress! Gardening can give you something to focus on and look forward to, with a delicious reward at the end!

You don't need a large budget to begin an urban garden! You can use almost any type of container to begin your garden which is great if you have a few buckets or containers lying around.

You can make your urban garden as intricate or simple as you want, and grow as many or few items as you need!

Many urban farmers grow things such as tomatoes, lettuce, onions, or peppers. The combination of plants, herbs, and veggies that you grow will depend on what your household eats the most.

How To Start A Micro Garden

Before you begin your micro garden, you will need to pick the perfect spot. If you live in an apartment, you may want to use a balcony or window box to grow your produce. Any place that receives sunlight can be used for an urban garden.

Next, you need to decide which items you want to grow. Once you know which seeds you need, you will have to purchase them from your local nursery, hardware store, or online.

Pick containers that not only fit your space but be sure they will accommodate what you are growing. For example, if you want to grow corn, be sure the container is deep enough to hold the stalks.

For herbs such as cilantro, basil, and oregano your containers don't need to be very large because the roots on these herbs are shallow. You can use jars, bins, soup cans, or even styrofoam food containers.

While micro gardening is a great way to repurpose old materials, never use items that previously contains harmful substances such as chemicals or pesticides.

Arrange your garden in a way that works for the space you have, you can stack your containers, line them up side by side, or stagger them around where you have enough room.

Use items such as rope, PVC pipe, bars, ladders, or trellises to train your plants to grow upward, this will help if you have limited floor space.

Tips For Starting A Micro Garden

For the best results when starting a micro garden, apply tips and tricks to maximize your space and grow as much food as possible with limited space.

• Tip 1. Harvest rainwater to incorporate it into your garden. This is an eco-friendly way to repurpose water and save money. You can set out buckets to collect the rainwater or use pipes to direct the water directly into your plants.
• Tip 2. Build your urban garden from the ground up, rather than sideways. Building upwards will save floor space and allow you to plant more vegetation.
• Tip 3. Get your neighbors involved. Urban gardening is a great way to meet new people and incorporate your whole community into a project that helps everyone. Create a schedule so that each person can participate and be able to reap what they sow.
• Tip 4. Soak your seeds overnight to help them grow faster and more efficiently. Many people suggest that you only need to soak larger seeds, but soaking all seeds is beneficial.
• Tip 5. Use good quality seeds to ensure that your micro garden will thrive. Old or bad seeds may not grow properly or at all. Sometimes it is more economical to spend a little bit more money on better seeds and seedlings.

Have You Tried Micro Gardening?

Have you ever created a micro garden? Which delicious herbs and veggies did you grow in your garden? Which type of setup do you prefer? Let us know how you navigated the world of urban gardening in the comments below!