DIY Gardening Without A Garden

There is no act more gratifying, more basic, more liberating, than to coax organically grown food from the Earth and to prepare for your family. Aha, I hear you chorus, impossible! I've only got a balcony and 10 spare minutes a week …

Impossible? Of course not. Here is a tried and proven way to grow vegies or whatever from very little space, time and effort. This method is ideal for unit dwellers with just a balcony or those who want a bit more than pot planting or window-boxes.

You will need:

4 equal lengths of wood, about 1 m ( 3 ft ) long by at least 15 - 20 cm ( 6 - 8 in ) wide.
A small bucket or two of small pebbles
A bucket of organic fertiliser, preferably animal manure
Two packs of organic commercial potting mix

To start, pick a rather sunny spot on your balcony, verandah or pocket handkerchief backyard and arrange the wood to make a square frame.

Hammer three nails in every corner to support the square frame.

Spread the pebbles on the ground evenly within the frame.

Fill the box quarter full with soil then add the manure followed by more soil until the frame is full.

Give the soil and even mix making sure that you don't bring up the pebbles.

Water it lightly and wait about two weeks for the manure to rot.

Should weeds appear, just pull them out.

You are now ready to plant your new garden.

It is up to you to plant what vegies you like but the ones we have included are most popular and productive.

It is important to reserve a row for herbs as they add flavour to meals (turning a simple meal to sensational) and may even keep insects away from your 'garden'.

Water every few days or when the soil feels dry, pull out weeds if they appear and give liquid organic feed every couple of months. (Keeping a worm farm on your balcony, compost the scraps and feed the liquid fertiliser back to the vegies).

You can replace a row of vegies with some colourful flowering plants or edible flowers.

Finally, don't feel restricted by size - be creative.

Happy gardening and eating.

Nothing tastes as good as home grown, fresh-picked organic fruits and vegetables. It doesn't take a lot of skill or space to grow something delicious in the backyard. Here's a collection of great tips and ideas to turn your home garden into a gourmet's delight.
http://ecobites.com/self-reliance-/a-lot-of-food-from-a-little-space-3.html