From Self Sufficiency for the 21st Century, Revised & Updated by Dick and James Strawbridge + Some experience
How to grow more food in small spaces;
The city garden.
There are multiple ways to use your space optimally, however small your garden. Think vertically, grow climbing beans against walls, lead your fruit trees in space saving styles. Place a worm tower in a corner and catch rain water in a container. Don’t forget the fauna by adding nectar rich flower in between you vegetables. Try feeding your local birds. If you have a little extra space try keeping chickens in a movable coop and you will have fresh eggs for breakfast.
1. Fruit trees grown by being led often give more harvest and take up less space. A small apple tree can still give kilo’s of fruit this way.
2. You can have a small wall greenhouse for more winter harvest. (Ikea sold some very cheap shelving units with covers (Hyllis). I have had mine for a year and they are in great condition in-spite of being outside all winter! )
3. You can grow food and vegetables in hanging baskets
4. Raised beds are great for gardens without dirt.
5. climbing plants are a great space saver. They even have small marrows and pumpkins that you can let climb.
6. You can grow potatoes in a potato growing bag (In my best year this gave me 3 kg of potatoes from one bag. Nice to try! Right now I am growing potatoes in big containers. To give them more space!)
7. Window sills can become plant containers. You can grow lettuce, herbs and tomato in there.
(Self Sufficiency for the 21st Century, Revised & Updated by Dick and James Strawbridge)
8. Herbs do great in containers anyway. And fresh herbs are very expensive in the store here. Try growing basil inside for example! Great results.
(Pixabay by drumpie1)
9. Foraging in the city can also be a great source of food! Some cities have chestnut trees, brambles, hazelnuts, a seaside or a park with nettles
Will add some more ideas later!
If you’re low on options then buckets can be used as pots–peppers actually grow very well in them, and buckets can be hella cheap. If you can afford to avoid plastic, though, then please do that.
If you have an old pot it’s worth cleaning the inside as well. “But I’m filling it with dirt anyway,” you may say. Yes, but you don’t want your basil to be competing with any weed that could be leftover in the pot.
Look for a, “chicken tractor,” for movable chicken home options–you’ll get tons more ideas with that keyword.
Pollinators that are endangered and vital to the rest of your local environment (such as that regional park nearby that you might love visiting) will benefit from you growing native plants rather than the other stuff that may be popular. Calscape is great for people in California. Check if your area has something similar! You want native plants because they and the bugs that pollinate them have evolved together for millions of years, while that other plant from somewhere else has not. Lots of things can work in pots, too! Just adjust how much you’ll need to water them.
Make sure your plant babies get the amount of sun that they need!
(Native plants attract native wildlife)
(Got Milkweed?)