• Register  |
  • LoginLogin
Close
Login
 
 
Register
 Advanced search
  • Search
  • Register
  • Login
  • JOIN!
  • View unanswered posts
  • View active topics
  • Gardening
Gardening Forum   VEGETABLE GARDENING DISCUSSION FORUMS  Vegetable Gardening Forum

Outdoor Container Veg Garden on a Covered Porch.




Post a new topic
Post a reply
5 posts • Page 1 of 1

Outdoor Container Veg Garden on a Covered Porch.

Tue May 19, 2009 3:10 am

Hello all,

I'm in GA, just north of Atlanta. I have a northern facing porch that gets probably 1-2 hours of morning sun, with about 3.5 hours (guesstimates) of sun in the evening.

I want to start growing food if at all possible. I have a small container herb garden, but would like to add other things, but I'm not sure what can grow in these conditions.

Here's what I hope I can grow:
Tomato (some medium size)
Lettuce
Spinach
Carrots
Peppers (The hot kind, not Bell)
Anything interesting you can recommend.

Any ideas? Tips? Advice?
6shooter
Newly Registered
 
Posts: 6
Joined: May 19 '09
Location: Just North of Atl. GA.
Top

Tue May 19, 2009 5:21 am

JMO, but I think you're going to need more sun that what you described. It's my understanding that to produce veggies, you must provide a minimum of 4 to 6 hours of direct sunlight. I could be wrong, though. Image

Is there any way you could position the containers so they wouldn't be under the cover of the porch? Do you have any yard at all?
User avatar
Kisal
Mod Emeritus
 
Posts: 7648
Joined: Jun 24 '08
Location: Oregon
Top

Tue May 19, 2009 11:05 am

If your porch is anything like my NW-facing porch, I bet those couple of hours of setting sun scorches it. Which means lettuce and spinach, the best low-light candidates, would be fried (they can't take hot weather). Maybe summer spinach cousins like Malabar spinach? Carrots just might make it in a tall pot, especially if you grow the shorter varieties. The hot peppers are the least likely to succeed.

This is a crazy idea, but you would have a better chance of success with the tomatoes if the ENTIRE porch -- ceiling, floor, walls, were painted white. :cool: Or, even better, if you lined the side walls with reflective material (aluminum-lined insulation board comes to mind) or -- let's be a little more decorative :roll: -- some mirrors.

Other lower-light tolerant veggies that I can remember off the top of my head include bush beans and cucumbers, some herbs in the mint family, lemon balm, wild strawberries -- Fragaria virginiana -- (a little late to plant that for fruits this year), wild blackberries and huckleberries, and (not frost-tolerant so you'll have to bring it inside in winter but) coffee.
User avatar
applestar
Mod
 
Posts: 27219
Joined: May 1 '08
Location: Zone 6, NJ (3/M)4/E ~ 10/M
Top

Tue May 19, 2009 1:57 pm

Kisal wrote:JMO, but I think you're going to need more sun that what you described. It's my understanding that to produce veggies, you must provide a minimum of 4 to 6 hours of direct sunlight. I could be wrong, though. Image

Is there any way you could position the containers so they wouldn't be under the cover of the porch?


Yes, there is a section of the porch that stays shady.

Do you have any yard at all?

Not an inch of yard, just the porch. Apartment living :(
Last edited by 6shooter on Tue May 19, 2009 4:28 pm, edited 1 time in total.
6shooter
Newly Registered
 
Posts: 6
Joined: May 19 '09
Location: Just North of Atl. GA.
Top

Tue May 19, 2009 2:21 pm

I think that you will be fire with everything except the tomatoes. I would recommend arugula, parsley, basil, chives, thyme. If the evening sun is too harsh, just construct some kind of filtering screen.
Eclectic gardening style, drawing from 45 years of interest and experience. Mostly plant in raised beds and containers primarily using intensive gardening techniques.
Alex
User avatar
hendi_alex
Super Green Thumb
 
Posts: 3567
Joined: Jul 6 '08
Location: Central Sand Hills South Carolina
Top

Please Share. Thank you!

 
 
Top


Post a reply
5 posts • Page 1 of 1

 

 

  •   Similar Topics
    Replies
    Views
    Last post
  • My little container garden!
    in Container Gardening Forum
    8
    857
    by ahl389 View the latest post
  • SOIL for container garden
    in Vegetable Gardening Forum
    12
    824
    by Thornedvine View the latest post
  • May 2015 Container Garden Attachment(s)
    in Container Gardening Forum
    11
    1028
    by Countryladiesgardens View the latest post
  • My container garden & some questions Attachment(s)
    in Container Gardening Forum
    4
    1047
    by SentinelAeon View the latest post
  • My crazy container garden
    in Vegetable Garden Progress + Photos & Videos
    13
    952
    by SPierce View the latest post
  • Update to My Little Container Garden
    in Container Gardening Forum
    2
    766
    by ahl389 View the latest post
Return to Vegetable Gardening Forum
  • Delete all board cookies • All times are UTC
Privacy Policy | Contact Us
Copyright HelpfulGardener.com 2003-2018 all rights reserved.
All trademarks and copyrights held by respective owners.



cron