Vertical Vegetable Gardening
OK, so it’s not raised beds in the strictest
sense, but when gardening space is at a pre-
mium, you need to think laterally – or vertically.
Why not use pallets upright against a wall, ex-
periment with trellises or fences on your bal-
cony, or construct a basic A-frame or tepee for
climbing beans and sweet peas? Building a verti-
cal vegetable garden is not only a great way to
maximize the use of space; you can also use it to
make a real statement in your garden.
Use Grow Bags, Planters or Pots
Finally, if DIY is not your idea of fun, no
problem. Get a grow bag from your garden cen-
ter – literally a bag of compost that you slit a
hole into and plant your seedlings straight in. It
couldn’t be easier. Containers may not strictly
count as raised beds, but they fulfi l the same
purpose and may be a more adaptable solution
for your space, particularly if your garden is
small or non-existent.
Simply fi ll a large planter with compost, or
improvise with quirky containers such as defunct
Butler sinks, garden troughs, wooden boxes,
buckets, colorful plastic garden trugs or heavy
duty burlap sacks, and off you go. GG
Mike James is an independent writer that specializes in
houseplants. He wrote this piece in conjunction with Totally
Plants Indoor-Plants.co.uk.
October 2017
www.GardenandGreenhouse.net
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