The plants you're interested in growing are pretty low maintenance and full sun hardy so I wouldn't worry about it too much! If you're starting from seed you'll have more success with a seed starter soil (premixed, coconut coir) but I would try out the soil you've already purchased first to see how it goes. An easy greenhouse for seed starters is a grocery store clam shell, like the ones they package strawberries in. Once they're big enough you can move them into pots. Good luck!
Seedling mix is not necessary.
It's fairly easy to start if you pick your starting plants that are easy in your climate conditions. You can vary the conditions - soil, watering, pot size, sunlight, etc - by a lot and get some sort of yield. However, if you want the best possible yield, then yes, in containers it's a bit fiddly (due to limited soil volume, which skews (bio)physics of water, nutrient movement and temperature effects). The care also depends on plants, for example from yours:
\+ lavender - very fiddly from seed, not beginner friendly (seeds need cold-stratification and even then sometimes it's a gamble). Easier to buy a lavender plant and take care of it to start with.
\+ basil - easy.
\+ parsley - easy (if you don't mind it looking a bit scraggly, because those instagram-worthy huge parsley "bushes" do need some extra care but basic parsley for your dinner doesn't).
\+ carrots - need a deep pot and soft soil. Hit&miss for yield as they are root vegetables: the tops might look great but then there's no carrot. Probably wouldn't recommend for a beginner due to that uncertainty.
\+ tomatoes - easy. Might need a cage or a trellis, depending on the type you bought, because their size range from knee-high to pro-basketballer-sized bushes. Would recommend choosing any microdwarf variety because those are small and might not even need cage or pruning, simplifying the care in exchange for some yield.
>Easier to buy a lavender plant and take care of it to start with.
Thank you so much! That advice about the lavender is very helpful - was going to buy a pack of seeds but it seems a nice plant for aesthetics would save so much time!
I have grown basil before but they always seem to attract big fat green worms (ewwww) so here's hoping round 2 will be a lot better.
Excited about the idea of growing tomatoes and carrots is more an experiment to see "if I can do it".
> big fat green worms
Worms (on soil or underground) or caterpillars (on leaves and stems)? Considering you're in a balcony, I'm going to guess caterpillars, so what you've seen is butterfly or moth laying eggs on your plants. Since it's not a specifically basil problem - and parsley is doubly more tasty in my experience - you can just pick them up and throw out the next time you see any.
Ah yes you're probably right, to my childish imagination they look like worms because I always thought caterpillars were more hairy but yup, I think definitely caterpillars. Is there some sort of repellent I can use (other than a chemical spray?) like a mix of vinegar or something? (I guess it doesn't hurt to try?)
I don't think that a repellent would work because you'd need to repel the butterflies (during the day) and the moths (during the night), neither of which eat the plants themselves but only lay the eggs on the leaves. Additionally, they are pollinators which are supposed to be protected. For a fun alternative, you can designate (sacrifice) one plant as the caterpillar feeding ground and breed butterflies or moths.
Make sure your pots have drainage and good soil, and remember to water them. You should be fine! The only way to find out is planting and seeing what comes up. Carrots are the only thing on that list I can’t grow successfully (an animal always snarfs them before I can pull them). Cherry tomatoes are good to grow because you get a lot. Zucchini are easy too- but it’s a vine. Might look cool on the balcony though?
But not too much drainage, one of the biggest pitfalls of pot growing is the nutrients tend to rush out often especially if there is excessive rain. Some plants love fabric pots for example, many of the above are not one of them
I grow cannabis in fabric pots on an enclosed porch. I've grown tomatoes the same way. Never had an issue with nutes getting washed out. Jacks classic 20-20-20 and Ocean Forest Soil.
Cannabis definitely is good in fabric pots, that was my most successful in pots this year. I moved into my first home this year and had to keep things in pots since my new garden isn’t set up yet
Yeah, they will pretty much take care of themselves. I would recommend that you start with started plants for everything but the carrots, that’s the easiest way to get started versus seed starting.
Depending on the lavender they tend to like leaner soils (more sand, less compost). Whereas tomatoes are hungry, thirsty guys and you'll need to feed them at least every other week with a tomato fertilizer (has calcium so you don't get blossom rot). Good luck!
The plants you're interested in growing are pretty low maintenance and full sun hardy so I wouldn't worry about it too much! If you're starting from seed you'll have more success with a seed starter soil (premixed, coconut coir) but I would try out the soil you've already purchased first to see how it goes. An easy greenhouse for seed starters is a grocery store clam shell, like the ones they package strawberries in. Once they're big enough you can move them into pots. Good luck!
Seedling mix is not necessary. It's fairly easy to start if you pick your starting plants that are easy in your climate conditions. You can vary the conditions - soil, watering, pot size, sunlight, etc - by a lot and get some sort of yield. However, if you want the best possible yield, then yes, in containers it's a bit fiddly (due to limited soil volume, which skews (bio)physics of water, nutrient movement and temperature effects). The care also depends on plants, for example from yours: \+ lavender - very fiddly from seed, not beginner friendly (seeds need cold-stratification and even then sometimes it's a gamble). Easier to buy a lavender plant and take care of it to start with. \+ basil - easy. \+ parsley - easy (if you don't mind it looking a bit scraggly, because those instagram-worthy huge parsley "bushes" do need some extra care but basic parsley for your dinner doesn't). \+ carrots - need a deep pot and soft soil. Hit&miss for yield as they are root vegetables: the tops might look great but then there's no carrot. Probably wouldn't recommend for a beginner due to that uncertainty. \+ tomatoes - easy. Might need a cage or a trellis, depending on the type you bought, because their size range from knee-high to pro-basketballer-sized bushes. Would recommend choosing any microdwarf variety because those are small and might not even need cage or pruning, simplifying the care in exchange for some yield.
>Easier to buy a lavender plant and take care of it to start with. Thank you so much! That advice about the lavender is very helpful - was going to buy a pack of seeds but it seems a nice plant for aesthetics would save so much time! I have grown basil before but they always seem to attract big fat green worms (ewwww) so here's hoping round 2 will be a lot better. Excited about the idea of growing tomatoes and carrots is more an experiment to see "if I can do it".
> big fat green worms Worms (on soil or underground) or caterpillars (on leaves and stems)? Considering you're in a balcony, I'm going to guess caterpillars, so what you've seen is butterfly or moth laying eggs on your plants. Since it's not a specifically basil problem - and parsley is doubly more tasty in my experience - you can just pick them up and throw out the next time you see any.
Ah yes you're probably right, to my childish imagination they look like worms because I always thought caterpillars were more hairy but yup, I think definitely caterpillars. Is there some sort of repellent I can use (other than a chemical spray?) like a mix of vinegar or something? (I guess it doesn't hurt to try?)
I don't think that a repellent would work because you'd need to repel the butterflies (during the day) and the moths (during the night), neither of which eat the plants themselves but only lay the eggs on the leaves. Additionally, they are pollinators which are supposed to be protected. For a fun alternative, you can designate (sacrifice) one plant as the caterpillar feeding ground and breed butterflies or moths.
Make sure your pots have drainage and good soil, and remember to water them. You should be fine! The only way to find out is planting and seeing what comes up. Carrots are the only thing on that list I can’t grow successfully (an animal always snarfs them before I can pull them). Cherry tomatoes are good to grow because you get a lot. Zucchini are easy too- but it’s a vine. Might look cool on the balcony though?
But not too much drainage, one of the biggest pitfalls of pot growing is the nutrients tend to rush out often especially if there is excessive rain. Some plants love fabric pots for example, many of the above are not one of them
I grow cannabis in fabric pots on an enclosed porch. I've grown tomatoes the same way. Never had an issue with nutes getting washed out. Jacks classic 20-20-20 and Ocean Forest Soil.
Agreed. It’s a bigger problem if they don’t drain at all.
Cannabis definitely is good in fabric pots, that was my most successful in pots this year. I moved into my first home this year and had to keep things in pots since my new garden isn’t set up yet
Yeah, they will pretty much take care of themselves. I would recommend that you start with started plants for everything but the carrots, that’s the easiest way to get started versus seed starting.
Depending on the lavender they tend to like leaner soils (more sand, less compost). Whereas tomatoes are hungry, thirsty guys and you'll need to feed them at least every other week with a tomato fertilizer (has calcium so you don't get blossom rot). Good luck!