Your Balcony Herb Garden
You can bring a new image to your balcony by adding a few potted herbs. Having your herb plants in containers makes it easy because you can move them around (as you figure out the amount of sun your balcony gets). If you cultivate your balcony herbs in containers, they are portable—so you can bring them inside at the end of the season.
Your best bet for your balcony herb garden would be any herb that does well with lots of sun, like a morning glory. These little plants will tolerate the reflection from the windows and doors and also the heat that a metal balcony captures. Check out your balcony at different times of the day to see the quality of sunlight, the heat and the intensity. Check to see which way your balcony faces and whether it gets a lot of morning or afternoon sun.
Use gray or silver-colored herb plants as well as those with a velvety texture or thick leaves in your balcony garden. These will do well because they lose less water in evaporation.
These are some herbs that I suggest for your balcony:
- Aloe vera: Adding an aloe vera plant to your balcony will be easy. It tolerates the sun very well and needs little watering. You can use aloe vera easily by snipping off the tip and rubbing it on a burn or other skin problem. It will cool the location, but it will be sticky!
- Cayenne pepper: With cayenne pepper on your balcony, you can always add a little spice to your meal next time you grill out. With a bright pop of color, cayenne pepper will be great on your balcony.
- Cucumber: A trailing vine, like a cucumber, can provide an added touch to your balcony. Cucumbers are great for facials, ladies. Being able to add some cucumber to your salad is a lovely touch too.
- Hens-and-chicks: These are among my most favorite plants. These do not need a lot of watering—they are water-holding succulents—and will tolerate the hot temperature and bright sunlight that you might have on your balcony. They are cute to look at too!
- Lavender: Just one whiff of the soothing smell of this fragrant plant and you’ll be more at ease. The wonderful purple buds will make a colorful balcony even more colorful.
You can select a few nice-sized containers to put on your balcony or use a hanging balcony basket that has an inside layer from a coconut liner. I used chicken wire and moss to make my own herb plant balcony basket. It was my first attempt at something like that. That basket wasn’t the best thing since sliced bread, but it was functional. The key is to select a pot or basket that will allow for good drainage.
Good luck with your herb gardening. Be sure to let me know how your herb garden grows.
Here is more information on Windowsill Herb Garden. Here is a website with a free mini-course dedicated to Herb Gardens.
Great post. I recommend starting in pots, especially with herbs. Here at back to basics we still use pots for our herbs, we even dry them and use them threw out the year. The important thing is to start. Many of your questions will be answered at the site.