Top Four Edibles For Your Apartment

Just because you’ve become edgy, and bought and inner-city apartment, doesn’t mean you can’t still do what you love. For most, the transition from being able to garden, to not, has been difficult, but just because you now live in an apartment, doesn’t mean you can’t continue to grow the things you love.

Here are the best things to grow in an apartment, and how to do it:

Avocados

They can be put on almost anything, and what good would brunch be without avocado? The good news is that you can grow them in a confined space, and with only a moderate amount of care, you can be harvesting your own from your apartment in South Yarra.

What to purchase: Buy a dwarf-sized avocado plant and buy a pot appropriate to the size. Place some sand or stones underneath the soil to allow for water to drain all the way through the root and out.

How to maintain it: Make sure you plant the tree in a place that has high ceilings, the more room to grow, the better! Water your tree regularly but make sure that the plant is never soggy nor soaked. Tidy up your tree and prune the tree regularly. Once the skin has turned yellow, your avocado should be ready to harvest.

Carrots

Carrots are used for almost anything, be it a stew, a salad or to just add colour to a plate. Containing vitamin B6, A, C, K and many minerals, Carrots are a healthy addition to our diet.

What to purchase: You can purchase carrot seeds from almost any nursery, and sometimes they even come with start up kits. If you are doing it all yourself, make sure that you plant the seeds in a wide pot (around one metre) that is at least one metre deep with drainage holes underneath. Fill the pot with humus-rich potting mix to aid the growth of your carrots.

How to maintain it: Importantly, when you are laying the seeds, give them enough room to grow, but enough to help each other out – a good rule of thumb is to plant the carrots in rows, each carrot an 2cm apart, and a solid 10cm gap between each row. Gently press the seeds covering them with a thin layer of soil. Keep them watered and moist, but again not soaked.

Once you can see 1cm of the top, the carrots are ready for harvesting.

Lemons

Another superfood, the lemon is packed with not only vitamin C, but also an explosive amount of antioxidants.

What to purchase: If you want to get straight into it, buy a two or three year old dwarf lemon tree, that can easily sit out on your balcony. When you are purchasing a pot, make sure it is slightly larger than the root-ball of your tree, making sure that the pot has drainage holes at the bottom as well.

How to maintain it: Put some stones in the drainage dish to allow air and oxygen to freely roam throughout the plant, and move the tree into an area that receives around 12 hours of sunlight whilst also watering regularly.

Most lemons take around 6-9 months to harvest, so be patient. Once the colour of the lemon is a healthy yellow, and when you grip the lemon, there is a slight give, then your lemon is ready to be picked and eaten, drank or squeezed.

Mint and Basil

Herbs make everything taste and smell yummy – whether you are using them as decorative, or as the core to a broth, herbs can add that x factor to your dishes, whilst also making your home smell delicious!

What to purchase: Specifically, mint and basil are the best to grow in an apartment, as they require only moderate care. Buy a container or pot that has more than enough room for the herbs to sprawl (we suggest a pot with at least a 22cm diameter).

How to maintain it: Place the seeds in the soil and move it into a place that receives a lot of sunlight whilst also watering it regularly, making sure that the soft soil below remains moist and not dry.

Once they start growing, pluck and pull as you see fit!