You take your love of gardening to a whole new level — to the balcony! A balcony garden could be simple or complex, depending on the type of plants and the garden style you choose. Since balconies have a different climate than natural ground soil, the plant choices may vary too from your backyard garden.
However, there are some aspects to keep in mind while planning for a balcony garden:
- How large the space should be, has to be the fundamental question in your mind when planning planting in your balcony. The choice here has to be specific and has to be noted for the size of plants to choose from.
- The sunlight your balcony gets every day (for how many hours) has to be noted. Approximations work sometimes, but if plants selected for your balcony garden are sensitive to the scorching heat of the sun, then it is better to have accurate estimates of the sun’s exposure.
- How much time would you be able to give to your plants out of your busy schedule?
- Water availability is also an important factor to keep in mind while selecting plants for your balcony garden.
- The budget has to be the first consideration as further planning is dependent on it.
The windiness and overall temperature has to be monitored for some specific plants. Also, in case of growing edibles, more careful selection and processes would be involved.
The plants grown in your balcony garden are a part of house interior and need to be kept tidy and aesthetically appealing at all times. Following are 4 plants ideal for balcony gardens:
Boston Fern
Also known as the Boston sword fern, this plant grows like a shrub and is ideal for pots. For balcony garden, a dense plant like this makes for a tranquil green background for the more colorful smaller plants to be grown in the fore.
Roses
Roses are one of the most popular flowers in gardening, be it indoor or outdoor. With a variety in color and all beautiful in their unique way, this species of flowers goes well beyond mere flowers. The soothing and powerful fragrance mixed with the cool breezes could give your adjoining area (with balcony) a natural room freshener. They need a few hours of sunlight daily and are more likely to blossom in winters. And how can we forget that they make a great ‘make up’ gift after your lady love has been cross at you for whole day.
Lilies
A peaceful look and serene fragrance, lilies also come in a wide variety and are pleasing to the eye too. Lilies are used mostly as indoor plants and the shady side of your balcony garden could be used to grow lilies or hang them in beautifully decorated pots. Direct sunlight is a hurdle and if your balcony is directly exposed to sun all day keep away your precious lilies inside your living area. Peace lilies could also be used for the balcony garden, being a variant of lily. How to grow lilies
Coleus
Looking for ombre’d plants? Coleus is the natural answer. Coleus is an attractive plant with shaded leaves in beautiful hues. The advantage of planting the coleus in your balcony garden is that they don’t grow very tall and are thus easy to maintain. Easily trimmed and tidy plants, coleus comes in shades of white, red and green to beautify your already gorgeous garden.
There are various other options such as basil, columbine, money plants and many more to add to your balcony garden, but make sure you’re able to manage them well. Bamboo could be another great option as they can tolerate the harshness of the weather quite well. Make sure the sun exposure is right and the balcony garden is well kept and tidy with change of soil and watering frequently.
