Making the most of small outside space in an urban garden
It can sometimes be difficult to think of urban garden ideas that can be tried out for small outside spaces, especially when working with a tight budget! There are several different options that can be experimented with, which can range from installing an artificial grass lawn, through to ingenious upcycling and space saving approaches. In this way, it’s possible to be creative with your urban garden, even if your budget is a bit tight. Some ideas to try include:
Window Boxes & Hanging Baskets
This involves finding the best window boxes and hanging baskets to make use of balconies and windowsills; make sure that you have enough light to support most plants, and check to see whether you can firmly secure your baskets and boxes to the wall and balconies if you have heavy wind, as well as if you can easily bring them back inside.
Going Vertical
Another approach to try for an urban garden on a budget is to make the most of vertical space; modular installations can involve placing trellises and hooks up walls and in different shapes so that you’re not cluttering your walking space. As long as you have the vertical space, you can potentially put up more flowers and plants than with a horizontal arrangement.
Micro Stairs
As with using a vertical garden, you can employ micro stairs to create more space in an urban garden; this means creating special steps or tiers, or repurposing steps in part of your garden. This approach probably isn’t best, though, if you have pets or small children.
Artificial Grass
With artificial grass, one idea is to focus on creating a small grass area within your urban garden that can be used to add more colour to concrete; this can be a good idea if you don’t have a lot of square footage, with artificial grass capable of being tailored to your space. Artificial grass also tends to be pet friendly and good if you have trouble keeping grass maintained on a balcony.
Upcycle Items
By upcycling, you can re-use old household items to act as pots; some of the best items to try include old coffee mugs, garden forks, pallets, moving box parts, and any spare pieces of wood or metal that you’ve been using for DIY. Old wine bottles, ladders, and even bath-tubs can also be recycled.
Use Window Shutters
Another ingenious approach that’s worth trying if you really are pushed for space, window shutters can be adapted to feature plants, creating a micro garden. Plants can be attached to the window frame, so that when the window are open, the plant has access to the sun, and are safely brought back indoors when the window is closed.
Hanging Bags
You can also try investing in PVC, waterproof hanging bags that can be hung around your home and balconies; this can be effective if you want to further increase your use of vertical space, and want to do so without danger of leaking soil and water.
