It’s spring, and, for many people, thoughts begin to turn to gardening.
Even if you’re within city limits with limited space, there’s no reason not to grow vegetables or flowers.
“It’s often overlooked how important gardening is to people in the city,” said Ray Davis, an avid gardener and agent with RE/MAX Realty. “A lot of us have gardens behind fences and barriers.”
His garden is an “outdoor space” with patio furniture, where he (and dog Bella) relaxes as often as possible. Davis planted everything there except the Japanese maple tree.
“I enjoy watching the ostrich ferns grow, and I have flower beds,” he said.
Ruth Consoli, a freelance landscape designer who often collaborates with Jeff Deitrick of EarthTone Hardscapes in New Cumberland, noted that the lack of urban space can be countered by vertical gardening—such as trellises for climbing plants, or hanging pots.
Products called wooley pockets can be used to hang plants on walls or other structures. You can also do terracing with planter boxes on a small paved area, Deitrick said.
“I had a customer with a small patio who built little beds around the edges and a fence around it,” Consoli added.
A little illusion doesn’t hurt either when you have height but little width. Selecting flowers of paler, pastel-y, colors—white, purple and soft green—make a garden look more spacious, as opposed to a “hot” color like red or orange.
Imagination is key. “Regardless of the space or lack of it, you can make an interesting garden,” said Consoli.
The first thing to decide is whether you want edibles, flowers or plants—or a combination. Seth Maurer, of Seth Maurer Landscaping in Harrisburg, said that even a small space can be a “self-sustaining grocery store” of vegetables and herbs.
Within that spectrum, you’ll have to choose between in-the-ground planting and container gardening. Each has its advantages and disadvantages. For example, the earth tends to retain more water and give a plant more room to grow, but some gardeners like the ability afforded by container gardening to pick up plants and move them around, like “rearranging a room every season,” as Davis put it.
“The choice depends on the site,” Maurer said. “My brother’s girlfriend has a 15-by-15-foot patio covered with pavers. There’s room for a fire pit or grill, tables and chairs, but none to plant in the ground. Container gardening is the way to go.”
One aficionado of container gardening is Bob Deibler, owner of the Bare Wall Gallery. “I do all container gardening, almost all in terra cotta. But they don’t winter well. The new, cheaper plastic containers are wonderful, and now I’ve gone to Styrofoam; they’re compressed and sturdy and light to carry.”
Recently he planted arbor vitae, an evergreen shrub that doesn’t need a lot of light and is doing well. “We don’t get a lot of sun in the space behind the store, so we can’t raise marigolds or petunias.”
Deibler takes joy in the fact that a few plants can make a garden seem lush and full. “If something’s not doing well, we can put it in the back, and put nice big plants in the front. We can showcase something in particular,” Deibler said.
Ann Rosenberg, a city resident who grew up in another urban environment, recalls her middle son, Geoffrey, wanting, as a child, to plant vegetables. Her initial response was that it would “take a lot of ground,” which the family didn’t have.
“But we got hanging planters and shepherd hooks and planted vegetables upside down 4 feet off the ground,” said Rosenberg. “We used plants rather than seeds to plant from, because seeds would have taken too long.”
The family chose cherry tomatoes instead of big ones, as well as hot peppers and bell peppers. “It was like a little side garden, not deeper than a big air conditioner condenser unit,” she laughed.
One regret is when her elder son, Ruby, wanted an apple tree, she told him there would be no room. “We could have done it,” she realized later. “We could have grown dwarf fruit in pots.”
It’s self-evident to select the right plants for the area—in terms of moisture, drainage and sunlight. A general caution is not to “overplant,” if you don’t want “overgrown,” Maurer advised. “For example, people may buy four gold mop cypresses, which are 6-by-6 inches (each), and plant four in a row. The following year, the plant will be 4-feet-by-4-feet, and, a few years later, 12-by-12.“
You have to choose plants that can weather the winter and container materials such as fiberglass or plastic, for the same reason.
New to gardening? Start small and simple. If you tend to forget to water plants, consider a drip irrigation system and set a timer or use rainwater harvesting.
“The key is low maintenance,” suggested Deitrick.
Gardening is as much work as you want to make it. “I put in a few hours every week,” said Davis. “It’s therapeutic. “
It’s easy these days to get good advice—the Internet, commercial garden centers or freelancers like Consoli. Get a ticket to the HYP Annual Home Tour in May, visit the Pennsylvania Garden Expo or Hershey Gardens, or try one of Dauphin County’s Community Gardens. They’re all great places to get ideas for your tight urban plot.
