Planting & Growing

Planters and raised beds are perfect for a small yard. On a small balcony or a tight terrace, it can be difficult to build a perennial bed or a vegetable patch—but with a planter box, you can do it anywhere. And you don’t have to settle for just summer flowers. In deep enough planters, root vegetables like carrots and potatoes can also thrive.

And inventive gardeners grow things everywhere! Sprouted potatoes can be planted with soil even in a reusable shopping bag or directly in a grow bag. By autumn, a single sprouted potato can turn into a whole potful of new spuds.

Small seeds are sown in spring into potting soil and kept evenly moist in sunlight. Some plants can be direct-sown straight into their growing spot. Check the instructions on the seed packet to see if the plant requires direct sowing. Tomatoes, for example, definitely do—so they have time to ripen during Finland’s short summer.

With planter boxes, it’s important to remember that the only garden fertilisers and nutrients the plant receives come from the gardener’s hands. Too much fertiliser can easily burn delicate seedlings, which is why planting is always done in potting soil that is lower in nutrients.

Nutrient needs depend on what you’re growing. Summer flowers need plenty of fertiliser to bloom, while root vegetables don’t. Besides fertilisers, the soil also needs lime.

If space is limited, use the space upwards too. Even in a tiny yard you can grow a wide range of edible plants, from fruit trees to root vegetables. For example, a column apple tree takes up very little space but can still produce a generous crop of tasty apples.

An espalier apple tree, on the other hand, is trained to grow neatly into a compact shape. Because all branches in an espalier tree receive plenty of sunlight, it can even produce more efficiently than a “regular” apple tree.

Many berry bushes, such as currants, are also available in standard (tree) forms that fit nicely into limited space. And if you’re feeling adventurous, you can also tie currant bushes or apple trees to grow against, for example, a fence.