How to Urban Gardening – Beginner Guide

Having a garden at home brings so much joy. It relaxes you, lets you eat homegrown food, and is a beautiful experience for kids to see their plants grow. In this post, How to Urban Gardening – beginner guide, I will share all the tips and tricks that helped me grow my urban garden.

Living in a city means less space to grow, but it doesn’t mean you can’t grow some of your vegetables. There are many ways you can grow your vegetables in a small backyard or even on a balcony.

Gardening has been a great experience for me. My grandparents had a farm, so for me growing vegetables in a small space tells me that no matter where you live, there is always an opportunity to grow. Having my herbs on hand, or a couple of containers with lettuce, or getting tomatoes from my tomato plant, is a beautiful experience.

Designing your garden in advance is essential because it will let you know the number of materials to buy. This will save you time and money. If you live in an apartment, here is a guide on how to design a balcony garden.

Below are some tips that have helped me to grow my urban garden. Also, I will share some mistakes I made and what I learned from them.

Why is important to have gardening books at home?

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As beginners, creating an urban garden can be overwhelming. Books come with a lot of helpful information. I have a book with some general information on backyard homesteads, which has information on growing in small spaces. I also have a second book that has more specific information on the area I live in, which plants are better to grow in the area when to start growing based on my weather, which pests are more frequent in the area, the last frost day and more. Books are great resources that will guide you through creating your urban garden.

Books, videos, and online research can help you make fewer mistakes, but nothing like hands-on soil that will teach you even more. I learned that getting to know your plants would lead you to solve problems faster. There have been many times that I sit on my balcony with a cup of tea and start looking at my plants as they grow, I can see if they need more water, or the food plant I try this year seems better than the previous year or if they may need more sunlight.

Why is important to know your hardiness zone for gardening?

Knowing your hardiness zone area will let you know which plants are best to buy and when to start your garden. If you live in an area with long winters like us, the window we have to sow our seeds and harvest is shorter than those in warmer weather. Knowing your area’s last frost date will tell you the best time to start planting your seeds.

Remember that the weather can be unpredictable sometimes, but this will give you approximately your last frost date.

How much direct sunlight does your garden receive during the day?

This information is essential because you will know which seeds to buy based on this. Each plant has its own needs; one of them is the amount of light needed to grow healthy.

This was part of my experience a couple of years ago; I don’t get direct sunlight on my balcony because it is facing north. I have tried to grow cucumbers twice, but unfortunately, they don’t grow well because they need direct sunlight, so I have it off my list to grow this year.

The seeds

There are many kinds of gardens like butterfly gardens, container gardens, flower gardens, vegetables, fruit, or herb gardens, just to mention a few. If you are growing vegetables and herbs to eat, it will be a good idea to buy seeds from a trusted source. I like to buy as many organic and not GMO seeds as possible because most of the crops I grow are to be consumed.

Seeds packages come with a significant amount of information on the back. At first, it gets a little confused because we are not growing on a farm, but after you start gardening, this gets easier, and you will know how to space your seeds in your plant pot, planter boxes, or soil in your urban garden.

Starting sowing your seeds indoors in late winter or early spring can speed up the process of harvesting. I have a simple guide on Indoor seed starting that has worked great for us.

Prepare your soil

This was one of my mistakes the first time I planted some seeds. Because I’m growing in containers, I thought that the potting mix would just do the work. The plants started to grow slowly, and they seemed to need something.

Then, I started adding some nutrients and preparing the soil before transferring my seedlings into bigger containers, and I saw a significant improvement. Crops were growing faster and healthier when I took the time to prepare the soil properly.

The majority of the potting mix comes with some nutrients but is not enough to grow our vegetables in containers. Plants can absorb all the nutrients faster in a container than directly in the soil.

The plant nutrients I have used are manure and worm casting. Always check the recommended amount to add to your plants on the product’s label. I try to buy organic plant nutrients as possible.

How much water do my plants need?

Too much water, the same as too little, can affect plants. I got a tool that has helped me measure my plants’ water intake. But plants will tell you for sure when something is not right.

There are many ways to add water to your urban garden, which depends on your space. I have a balcony garden, so a simple water can is enough to water my plants. If you have a big backyard, maybe you can install an irrigation system like sprinkles or drips irrigation system to ease the work. Depending on the plant you are growing, you may need to adjust it as some plants require more water than others.

I try to plant seeds with similar needs close to each other, so it is easier when watering. Just make sure they are good companion plants.

Take notes of your plants development

Writing down my plant’s development has helped me save time and money. As beginner gardeners, notes help us to understand the process better. Thanks to my notes, I know which plants were a success last year, how long it took to harvest, how frequently I need to feed them, to mention a few.

I created a how-to urban gardening – beginner guide printout that you can get directly in your mailbox by joining My Journey to Green Community.

My experience growing vegetables in the city.

Each place that I have lived has its uniqueness. The place I’m living now faces north, so basically, we have almost no direct sunlight all year round. When I was looking for what to grow, I chose crops that grow well in the shade.

I took the first year to have fun and sow different crops that can grow well based on my area and the amount of light required.

Lettuce was a productive crop for us the past two years. I also harvested some tomatoes, but they will produce better in sunny places. I did try cucumber twice, and it didn’t go well.

Don’t get discouraged; this is part of the learning process. Take notes of which crops went well and which ones didn’t. You will have a better harvest the following year because now you know which crops to grow. I created this how-to urban gardening – beginner guide to transfer my experience in growing vegetables in the city for you to enjoy.

Like you, I’m also a beginner gardener; I’m sharing my experience creating my urban garden with this post. Knowledge will make you more confident, and the only way to get that confidence is by trying. Even the most experts in the area have some bad years because of the weather. Continue trying, and you will get beautiful results.

I hope this how-to urban gardening – beginner guide inspired you to start your own garden.