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A Beginner Who Doesn't Know Where to Begin
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Posted by MaryAtUAB 7 (My Page) on Wed, Apr 20, 05 at 15:18
Well, I live in an apartment style dorm in Birmingham Alabama. One of my favorite things about living here is my balcony and I would love to start a garden. There's a problem: I've never gardened before. I've experimented with some lillies and discovered a few problems:
- Wind. I'm on the 8th floor so the wind is continually blowing.
- Sunlight. I don't want to have to keep moving my plants everywhere because the balcony above is blocking the light. Depending on what time of the day it is there's usually shade.
So, right now I have a 9" pot and I plan on getting some boxes to plant some more flowers near the ledge of the balcony. If anybody could please give some tips or recommend any flowers, plants, vegetables, etc. that can handle wind and some shade it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you! |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: A Beginner Who Doesn't Know Where to Begin
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| Get some low growing ground covers and then some sturdy bulbs (like lilies) underneath. There are some lilies that like shade. You might want to try some small shrubs. I have a bleeding heart in a pot that loves the shade and blooms nicely. Look for dwarf plants, they can stand the wind. It sounds like you have partial shade, so you can really grow anything, you would be surprised how much sun you really get- remember afternoon sun counts double as far as hours of sun plants will get on your balcony. Most plants can stand the wind, just make sure you have a heavy pot or trough. Good luck and have fun! |
RE: A Beginner Who Doesn't Know Where to Begin
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| I would accept your shady conditions and choose plants accordingly. Though like lighter said, you'd probably be surprised at how much light you actually get. I have an east-facing balcony that gets only morning sun on one side, and I can grow cacti and succulents just fine. So just put things where you think they should go, and leave them there. The plants will adapt. If things don't flower as well as you want them to, try something more shade-loving. There are too many flowers to list, so I'll just say a couple veggies: carrots, lettuce, cherry tomatoes (some bred especially for balconies), cucumbers (ditto tomatoes), potatoes, pole beans (take up less space than bush beans. Scarlet runner gets nice flowers), and pretty much anything else you want to try. I wouldn't try melons or anything else really heavy or that requires full sun all day. Get a good book from the library on plants, and you should be able to decide what you want to try. There are just as many plants that like shade or part shade as those that like sun. |
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