I wonder how well that shoe holder plant display works. I have a couple that aren't being put to use.

Lovely ideas. I don't even have a balcony or a place to attach a window box *sad face*

I envy green thumbs and that pallet garden! They are all beautiful but that's my fave!!

You can also use lengths of pvc tied to your deck or balcony railing. Not as pretty as some of the above but big space saver.

I have a rose garden of 5 Floribunda and 2 Grandiflora rose bushes on my apartment terrace. They grow in 24" diameter plastic planters. They require regular watering and fertilizing, but it's really nice having a rose garden in the sky.

While re-purposing items for a garden is a great idea in theory, some things shouldn't be used for edibles. I work in food science, and there's a list of things I will only grow ornamentals in.
Two of the most popular ideas I see and worry about growing food in are old pallets and galvanized metals. Pallets- what's been on it, where's it been stored, how was it treated, etc. Galvanized buckets- well, we don't use them in aquaculture because chemicals will leach into the water and affect the fish. If I can't use it to take care of a fish, I'm not going to directly grow my food in one...
My balcony will attest to the fact that I'm a huge fan of growing in whatever container is around and pretty, but please take time to think about what you're growing edibles in. :-)

I feel like you must need perfect sun exposure to be able to pull off some of these ideas. In the smaller containers, my plants would all be fried to a crisp.

remember this one? "we've decided that the glass-shelf window is an idea worth reviving. It eliminates both the ugly view and the need for a curtain or blinds. Daylight still shines through and you get a refreshing eye- and lungful of nature." http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/how-to-add-glas-9985

Galvanized steel is stainless steel that has been alloyed with zinc. Zinc, in small amounts, is not toxic. It is, in fact, sold as a cold remedy. So I am not seeing the problem with planting edible plants in galvanized steel containers. I have long used runoff rainwater collected from galvanized steel roof to water my garden, and I researched that

That pallet garden is brilliant!

Oh, I really want a citrus tree for my sunroom. They are so expensive though, I'd be afraid of killing it.

Subirrigated planters (#7) are the only way to go if you actually want to grow something.
The pallets, glass jars, and the over the door shoe organizers look cute, but they are awful environments. The pallet and organizer will dry out in a moment's notice, and the glass jars will be perfect for creating an anaerobic environment that is less conducive to growing plants and more suitable for stinky sulfuric bacteria. Even the stereotypical terra cotta pots require tedious, copious amounts of watering in the summer to grow anything.
I have converted all my planters to the subirrigated planters and water maybe once a week if it doesn't rain in the middle of summer. Pretty much any plant will do well in them, and I don't have to babysit them whatsoever.

The herbs in canning jars is a terrible idea. There's a reason why flower pots have holes in the bottom. Plants need drainage!

If you're actually a renter, make sure to check with the community's rules on decor for some of these! We had to take down our shoe holder planter because it was 'storage equipment' and not allowed to be seen from outside. If there's any chance that a neighbor will see it, check first so you don't have to undo all your work.

A lot of these ideas "look" good (especially when just planted), but really...in the long run, some will not do well at all. Plants DO need drainage. Some of these ideas need almost constant watering as the soil area is so small, they will dry out quickly. And if you have too much light, it's a good idea to use containers that you can move around (or put inside when it frosts).
I am a farmer and have a half acre greenhouse where we use my husband's Senior Project from Cal Poly University to grow basils, bell peppers, green beans, etc (all short plants) in PVC pipe hanging (horizontally) from the cross bars. We have holes in the top and the roots stand in the pipe,the plants pick up what they need from the water we run through them. No waste of space!
I'm always telling my Farmers Market customers to "use your vertical space" if you don't have much room in your home/patio/yard.
You can see our set up at a youtube video or on Facebook. (not advertising here, just trying to help everyone to see how to use their vertical space).

Nancy at SLO Grown Produce

I saw on DIY network an idea this weekend where they took the Ikea Grundtal wall storage and used it to grow herbs (I think they even used the Grundtal containers). With either careful drilling (or growing plants with shallow root systems and using gravel as part of the filler), drainage could be achieved as well.

The canning jars idea isn't entirely bad... Put some marbles or fishtank rocks on the bottom before the compost and keep them in an area that doesn't get rained on. You can see into them so water regulation is simple.

I like the look of the pallets and wine crates. Wish I was green-fingered!

Timely post! Growing season starts soon and we just moved into a place with an elevated deck!

I love these ideas! Just put my ideas up on pinterest so I can remember that I want to do this!

Thank you Nancy for this info and for all the helpful comments; please keep it up for those of us suburbanites who have to deal with lead in the soil, vandalizing neighbors and loose dogs (and no fence, wah) so we can have a chance at least for growing on a side porch, raised up structures or indoors. Cheers.

I have mixed feelings about this post. On the one hand, I love anything that encourages people to experiment with growing living things, especially food.

On the other hand, most of these ideas, while cute, are destined to fail. As several other commenters have mentioned, they don't take in to account the basic needs of plants - the proper amount of light, moisture, nutrients.

It's design without function. I fear someone who is new to gardening will try these, end up with moldy yellow seedlings, and decide they have a brown thumb.

On the other, other hand (I'm fickle!) I love seeing gardening posts. I especially love the ideas for going vertical and using whatever space you have available to grow something. So keep these coming - maybe a "good questions" feature for gardening in apartments?

Here are a couple of shots of my Aquaponic garden on the 2nd-floor apartment balcony:Aquaponic Balcony

We're just coming out of winter so the system isn't exactly busting at the seams, but you can see just how much growing space I have.

Aquaponics is recirculating aquaculture blended with hydroponics. I have 7 happy koi and a bunch of crayfish in fish tanks that create all the natural organic fertilizer I need. To learn more about aquaponics,
click here: wikipedia-aquaponics
or here: backyardaquaponics.com

these are a bit more conventional but still lovely. Easy to set up and fit containers found at your local hardware store. i have done up my patio with these three items, it gets the pots off the ground and up in the sun, leaving lots of room for furniture. things grow great in them I ordered more of each after my first year to expand my garden.

For walls (requires drilling)
http://www.hangapot.com/

For railings (these just loop over standard sized railings)
pots
http://www.amazon.com/Amertac-5014BL-Flower-Holder-Black/dp/B000KL6GCA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1331338984&sr=8-1
flower boxes
http://www.amazon.com/Amertac-5022BL-Railing-Flower-Holder/dp/B000LF4F9G/ref=pd_bxgy_lg_img_b

Lapaz- interesting, thanks. I'll have to read up on that. :-)

I'm a renter with a very tiny porch. I decided to plant my herb garden in a vintage pepsi crate and I LOVE how it turned out. You can see it here :)

http://www.insideways.com/2012/01/diy-herb-garden.html

Seriously, I cannot wait to try the pallet garden!!

#7 is a SUB-IRRIGATED planter, not a "self-irrigating planter."

PLS don't plant edible things such as herbs or veggies in palettes. The wood is treated with very toxic chemicals, and it could leech into the plants and you might ingest it. Do some research on palette wood and all the chemicals, bacterias, molds, etc in it. It might be ok to use for flowers, but definitely NOT food.

#7 -- Is that a lotus I see? I am rapt with longing.

I have successfully had many plants in pots with no drainholes. They just need to be watered less often.

It's not a good idea to recommend people attach things to the walls or railings in a rental unit. Other than that, the rest of the ideas are great! Thanks for sharing them.

I saw the gutter planters a couple of years ago, and really wanted to do something on a boring tan brick wall. I got the gutters and painted them a terra cotta color, to stand out.
Hung them up, and since we live in the southeast where its very dry, I planted mexican roses (portulaca), purslane, appitina & cilantro. very pretty!

I tried the wine crates and love them...picked them up at our local liquor store (LCBO) at the cost of a donation to a local charity. protected them from water damage using a natural wood preservative (http://www.valhalco.com/). It did "age" the wood to a silvery colour but worth it to protect against rot. Planted herbs did very well.

I have been wanting to grow an avocado tree and a lemon tree in a pot. We have started our avocado tree, and it's about 5 feet tall now. Perfect for our balcony. Now I need a lemon tree. Wonder if they will fruit?

My only concern and question with the container water garden is if it would attract mosquitoes? We have enough in our yard already without adding a breeding ground to the mix. They do look lovely though!

Nice idea. You can use some milk bottle crates instead of the wooden case.

DON'T LISTEN TO THE NAYSAYERS! YOU CAN DO IT!

I had a great potted garden at my last apartment. I converted cheap plastic waste bins from IKEA into planters. I drilled holes in the bottom, put rocks in, then moss, then soil, and attached trellises to them. Pretty much everything did great. I had green beans, peppers, tomatoes, strawberries, eggplant, lettuce, and some small watermelons. ALL FROM MY BALCONY IN COLD NEW HAMPSHIRE. I didn't even get direct sunlight- we were at an angle to the sun, had tall trees nearby, and had a balcony above us. Also, this was my first time gardening- zero experience.

I started growing things a bit early in the season- both by buying from a greenhouse and starting seeds indoors, and using lots of fertilizer. If there was risk of frost, I'd bring everything inside (a long process- we're talking 20 pots) and put them under some plant lights. I extended the season by a month by keeping them indoors under the plant light and next to a humidifier. Kind of funny having trellises of fresh tomatoes in your living room. For watering I got a hose adapter for the kitchen faucet and a coiled garden hose that was *just* long enough to get to the balcony.

I'm not bothering with soil this time though- now it's all hydroponics. I've had a lot of early success. It's just as expensive as going the soil route (in some ways more so) but I'm getting bigger stuff faster.

Either way, it's a lot cheaper to buy stuff from the grocery store (and Freakonomics suggests it's better for the environment too... go figure) but I can never get through produce fast enough before it spoils. Going off the vine results in less wasted food in the end and fresh produce whenever I want it.

DON'T LISTEN TO THE NAYSAYERS! YOU CAN DO IT!

I had a great potted garden at my last apartment. I converted cheap plastic waste bins from IKEA into planters. I drilled holes in the bottom, put rocks in, then moss, then soil, and attached trellises to them. Pretty much everything did great. I had green beans, peppers, tomatoes, strawberries, eggplant, lettuce, and some small watermelons. ALL FROM MY BALCONY IN COLD NEW HAMPSHIRE. I didn't even get direct sunlight- we were at an angle to the sun, had tall trees nearby, and had a balcony above us. Also, this was my first time gardening- zero experience.

I started growing things a bit early in the season- both by buying from a greenhouse and starting seeds indoors, and using lots of fertilizer. If there was risk of frost, I'd bring everything inside (a long process- we're talking 20 pots) and put them under some plant lights. I extended the season by a month by keeping them indoors under the plant light and next to a humidifier. Kind of funny having trellises of fresh tomatoes in your living room. For watering I got a hose adapter for the kitchen faucet and a coiled garden hose that was *just* long enough to get to the balcony.

I'm not bothering with soil this time though- now it's all hydroponics. I've had a lot of early success. It's just as expensive as going the soil route (in some ways more so) but I'm getting bigger stuff faster.

Either way, it's a lot cheaper to buy stuff from the grocery store (and Freakonomics suggests it's better for the environment too... go figure) but I can never get through produce fast enough before it spoils. Going off the vine results in less wasted food in the end and fresh produce whenever I want it.

I got so inspired by all the AT balcony garden posts last year that I tried it myself. It was kind of a hodgepodge (http://dodiegoldney.wordpress.com/2013/03/09/creative-thinking-accidental-organizing/), but I'm looking forward to doing better this year!

Question---please help!! I have a north-facing balcony, but I'm on the west end of the building...and there's another building next to us. So I don't have any full-sun areas, but I have a few feet of railing that get sun in the summer for about half the day. What plants grow under those conditions? And what about plants that handle full shade? I can rig a planter, no problem, but I want something to GROW! It doesn't even have to be food. (I have a squirrel problem, actually, so I'm guessing something non-food would be better.)

My tiny balcony is very nice, actually, but I'd love to have a year without plant failure. :)

If you are concerned with mosquitoes in the water, hang a small wind chime or similar to the tip is in the water. Even a little air movement stirs the water enough that mosquito eggs won't survive. I do this over my bird baths.

Begonia and impatiens should do well in shade. Forest strawberries will if you want something with fruit. Bleeding heart, some columbine and fuschia also.

Most of my vegetables and some of my fruit are grown in containers near the house because most of my yard is habitat. Like James, I use one of the coiled hoses for watering. The few things that in the ground are watered from soaker hoses from the rain barrels.

AMChicago, do a search for "deep shade plants". Any of those will grow no problem. Alternatively, if you just want something organic, you might consider a vine that does ok in shade. Some of them like morning glory and moonflower grow crazy fast and will give you new flowers every day. Those vines aren't perennial though so come winter when they die you'll have a lot of dead organic matter to dispose of.

You might be able to grow brussel sprouts, radishes, spinach, kale, and lettuce- especially if you grow them in 'over-the-rail' flower boxes so they get a little bit more sun.

#8 is actually from here:
http://thesuburbangarden.com/2009/08/02/late-summer-update/

And how to make the earthboxes is here:
http://thesuburbangarden.com/2009/04/30/how-to-make-an-earthbox-diy/

As for drainage, if your balcony gets a lot of rain, you DO need drainage in your plant pots, otherwise you risk root rot. However, if your balcony doesn't generally get much rain, and you find you have to water it a lot yourself, then you should be fine in large containers with or without drainage.