Summer Gardening 101: A Small-Space Gardening Guide
Don your sun hats, apply your sunscreen, and slip into some rubber shoes; it’s gardening season, baddies. If you attend an early summer farmers market, you may notice that vendors are starting to sell tomato plants, pepper plants, herbs, and flowers that are absolutely yearning to get into the ground (or a pot!). If you’re feeling excited but slightly unsure or insecure about your gardening abilities, we’re here to help. Gardening helps us connect with nature, and more plants, in general, help us keep our air clean. However, not all gardening habits are created equal(ly susty). Gardening is not only reserved for those who have a great big backyard; even if you live in an apartment with just enough space for a few planter boxes or an array of pots on your fire escape, our guide to summer gardening can help you grow that green thumb this season in the most sustainable way.
Why Garden?
Not quite on the gardening bandwagon yet? Not sure you want to lower your carbon footprint? Not interested in having cherry tomatoes to snack on whenever you please? Planet hater? Yeah, didn’t think so. There are so many reasons to garden, let’s talk about them:
Reduces your carbon footprint - Plants are natural air purifiers, meaning they take in carbon dioxide and other chemicals or harmful elements in our air streams and release clean oxygen or water.
Supports your mental health: Once you start to see the first tomatoes growing on your tomato vine, you’ll understand. Gardening can help encourage positive self-esteem, provide space for peace, and improve concentration. In some cases, gardening provides space for community building as well—all things that can help us reduce stress and find joy.
Saves you money: No more spendy trips to the farmers market for those perfectly crisp cucumbers, no way! Now you have your own right outside. Need to get a gift for a friend? Cut and make your very own bouquet, no purchase necessary. Additionally, you can save money on fertilizer and soil by composting.
Looks cute: We see you working that straw hat, sipping on an ice-cold lemonade. You’ve never looked better, baddie.
What to plant–and When:
One of the biggest questions when it comes to gardening is when to start. Is it too late? Too early? Have I ruined all my chances of becoming a garden goddess? We defer to the moon to answer these questions.
1. Planting by the Moon: According to the Farmers’ Almanac (iykyk), gardening by the lunar calendar is an age-old practice and has served home gardeners and farmers alike. Let’s look at some important dates:
June 1st and 2nd: During the first few days of June it is recommended to plant seeds for above ground crops like fall lettuce, cabbage, cauliflower, collards, and other leafy vegetables.
June 5th and 6th: These days are best for root crops. Plant seeds for beets, potatoes, onions, carrots, and other root crops.
June 9th and 10th: Closer to mid-June is the time to start planting seeds for strawberries, other vine crops, and other late root crops (radish, parsnip, potatoes, turnips, etc).
June 13th and 14th: These are the best days to plant your transplant crops. Any plant you bought from the store or the market or received from a friend should be planted on these days, which are expected to be cloudier and milder in temperature.
June 18th and 19th: Time to plant your flowers, beans, corn, peppers, and tomatoes.
When to buy plants: Our best suggestion here is to talk to the experts. When you go to the farmers market and see a box of marigolds and think to yourself, can I plant these today? Ask the vendor. Farmers have loads of knowledge and will be happy to help you with your green thumb journey. Here are a few of our tips in the meantime:
2. Early-mid June is the time to start planting your tomatoes, peppers, herbs, and other plants that are on sale at the farmers market (chances are, if someone is selling a plant at a market, it means that plant is in season and ready to be planted)
3. June 13th and 14th are good days to plant transplant crops (plants that have been grown from the seed and are intended to be moved and re-planted into a forever home garden), but in general, look to plant transplant crops on cloudy days.
Companion and Container planting: The smaller the space, the bigger the heart; that’s the saying, right? Well anyway, we know that small spaces can feel limiting sometimes, but when it comes to gardening, there are loads of strategies to have a successful garden in even the smallest of spaces.
4. Container planting: Container planting is the term used in the garden world for planting in pots or boxes. Obviously, the biggest benefit to this type of planting is no ground is required, and space needed is minimal.
Best plants for containers: tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, cucumbers, bush beans, lettuce, spinach, summer squash, radishes, and herbs. And with a little extra TLC, cabbage, kale, broccoli, and cauliflower.
All companion pots are not equal – find out which pots to buy further down in this article.
5. Companion planting: if you’re trying to maximize space and resources, don’t forget that some plants can be planted together (and sometimes do better in unison!). Here are some besties in the planting world:
Basil x Tomatoes x Peppers
Cucumbers x Marigolds
Onions x Carrots
Squash x beans or peas
What do you need (resources and materials): Now, as much as you might want to, purchasing your own sun hat or gardening shoes is not necessary to have a green thumb. (Thrifting them, however, we can get on board with.) But there are some important materials you might need to start your garden. Many of these materials can be found at thrift stores or as hand-me-downs from friends and family (always check second-hand first!).
1. Pots and containers: If you can imagine something to hold a plant, then chances are, it probably can. However, that doesn’t mean it’s going to thrive. Let’s break down some of the necessary things to look for when collecting containers.
Size: Look for pots or containers that are around 15 and 20 quarts capacity. For plants like summer squash, tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant, a container of around 5 gallons in size is a good option. For chard, broccoli/cauliflower, and cabbage you will want something around 1-2 gallons in size. And small pots (4-6 inches deep) are perfect for spinach, lettuce, and herbs).
Material: Pots can come in many different materials as well. Here are some things to keep in mind:
Porous pots like wood, paper mache, and terra cotta – plants need to be watered more regularly.
Non-porous pots (glazed ceramic and dark glass) will hold water and will not require as frequent watering.
Drainage: Make sure all pots have multiple drain holes along the edges and watch to make sure that your plants are draining after watering (we do not want root rot!) You can also raise your plants with bricks, wood blocks, or milk crates to help them drain better (and save space!)
Soil, Compost, and Fertilizer: Besides the plants, what goes in your pots?
Organic is best: sourcing organic soil is going to be your best susty option when it comes to gardening. Organic soil is soil that is free of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. You can find this type of soil at most garden stores, but look for organic soil that is packaged in paper bags to limit plastic waste.
When planting with soil, your plants can eat up a lot of the nutrients in the organic soil, which is what creates the need for fertilizer. Fortunately, composting limits how much fertilizer our plants need to grow. Farmers’ Almanac recommends that for every ⅔ of soil, you should add ⅓ of compost to keep your soil healthy and nutrient-filled.
You can make your own compost if your space allows, or you can source your compost from local organizations in your area. If you are participating in a compost pick-up program already, chances are you can source organic compost for free or at a subsidized cost through that organization. It’s a win-win!
Gardening Tools: Of course, you will need other materials to plant and maintain your plants but keep in mind that you can DIY a lot of these tools. For example, your lemonade pitcher or that kombucha growler taking up space in your cabinet can double as a watering can. Instead of buying a shovel, consider if a large spoon or small bowl might do the same things.
Some susty brands making gardening-ware we recommend include:
What now?
Caring for your plants: It’s important to maintain your plants throughout the summer and prepare for harvesting. We recommend following along with the Farmers Almanac Moon planting calendar to see what days are best to plant and harvest throughout the season. In addition, books like How to Grow Your Dinner Without Leaving the House and Citizen Farmers and content creators like Eugenia Diaz, Marcus Bridgewater, and JudyBaoGarden are great resources for all your garden care conundrums.
Utilizing your Garden: before you know it your garden will be bursting at the seams. So what do you do when you have too much in your garden to know what to do with? We have some ideas
Gift your produce: What says I love you more than a fresh basket of home-grown produce? It quite literally says, I would get on my hands and knees, elbow-deep in dirt for you.
Make a Bouquet: In order to encourage growth of your flowers (especially your perennials) routine trimming and pruning is important. Take what you trim and build your own flower arrangements for your home or gift to a friend.
Cook (of course): The best way to use your plants will always be to cook with them. Make sure to keep up with the harvesting of your plants in order to ensure you can get the most out of your produce. You can find seasonal recipes online or in our recent seasonal eating guide as well!
Now tell us! What will you be planting?