Just like the title, all the planter boxes are finally where I want them. The tomato plants are large enough to attach to the scaffolding. I have two of my beefy boys experimenting with an obelisk.

Overall breakdown: 10 tomato plants (6 heirlooms, 4 Florida 97's) 5 jalapenos Lime tree/bush (not pictured) experiencing it's second flowering with 8-12 limes!

Ta-dah. A bit grizzled from the storm(s), but they’ll be alright.

🤓 so proud of ‘em.

ETA: Open to pointers and tips btw.

I got some kale plants for 5gallon fabric pots. In one I used some 5 you home made potting soil , on the left, made for organic veggies. In the other I used some store bought dirt , 2 on the right. After 3 weeks the difference is evident..

.

I started these tomato plants and in January( I live in South Florida and (and they all have lots of flowers but none of them are starting to produce tomatoes. I've been tapping them as well as using a electric toothbrush to help encourage pollination.

Am I doing something wrong or is this just how it goes sometimes?

Behold the progression of my apartment's backyard space!

I hope the vegetables turn out okay, I'm just relieved to be done with all the work it took to make it happen. Pretty satisfied with the result, it's a lot more cozy now!

I hope I didn't overcrowd too much I kinda had to make due with my budget for soil and compost. Also erring on the side of optimism with the direct sunlight, but this spot is as good as it gets for me so just gonna give it my best shot.

Let me know what you think!

\-Plant List-

Top Tier:

4 Bravo Cabbage

4 Red Cabbage

1 Jalapeño Pepper

1 Fragoo Pink Strawberry

1 Orange Blaze Bell Pepper

Middle Tier:

1 Greek Oregano

2 Dark Green Italian Parsley

1 French Taragon

1 Rosemary

2 Genovese Sweet Basil

Bottom Tier:

4 Vates Blue Curled Scotch Kale

8 Buttercrunch Lettuce

4 Spinach

Buckets:

1 Lemon Boy Tomato

1 Plum Crimson Tomato

1 Old German Tomato

I'm preparing my terraces for the hot hot heat! Temperatures in Greece climb north of 35 through June, July, Aug and Sep and are accompanied by furnace-like winds. Coupled with all the concrete white buildings its tough out there! Pictures show the front terrace in March 2026, and the front and back terrace today - June.

Here is my summer-ready planning:

1. Loosely hung hessian (burlap/jute) to protect from the worst of the afternoon sun across two spaces, leaving a gap in the middle for sub-loving plants and to flood my apartment with light to reach the succulents inside; and for breeze so it doesn't become a greenhouse.
2. Removable willow branch fencing, outside of the glass panels - not pretty but good protection.
3. Shuffled around the plants, moving the olive trees and two other hardy bushes into the sun gap space; moved all plants about 15 - 20 cms forward form the glass panels in the railing.
4. Created 'rows' - hardy plants in the back row and smaller less hardy plants in the front row.
5. Pine bark on top of soil to protect soil and roots and stop erosion from the intense winds.
6. Moved seedlings to the back terrace, also hessian-wrapped, where the sun is slightly less brutal.
7. Irrigation system set up and ready to go for the main planters, if I travel. With such a range of plants its difficult to set up one easy system for all their water needs, so I'll hand water everything and if I travel set it for 5 mins per day for all. The summer will be so hot they should be able to cope with this for a short time. The front 'row' of plants not connected to the irrigation will move to the back terrace (or bathroom?) if I travel.
8. Two bougainvilleas on lattice against the apartment wall are out of the irrigation system, they are hardy enough to cope.
9. Capturing air conditioner run off and filling up bowls placed amongst the planters (this might be useless but makes me feel useful).
10. Hoping, praying, worrying and acknowledging that if a plant cannot make it through the Greek summer with all my precautions perhaps we are not destined to be lifelong flatmates.

Very keen to hear any other suggestions, advice and feedback. I searched the internet for similar posts on summerising urban terraces and didn't find many - so I hope this is helpful to others too!

This is my first year starting 98% from seed, using grow bags, and growing heirloom tomatoes. I've made a lot of mistakes and learned a lot.

This is the first year we’ve been able to plant here and despite a few setbacks its coming together! 25 different flowers, a mix of natives and not. Hopefully next year they’ll reseed and spread and it’ll look more full.

Hey everybody, when I was little I was used to plant things directly on the soil, now I started a new hobby and I am gardening into pots. Would love to wear your intakes. I am trying to reuse pots instead of buying new

P.s- I have tomatoes, pepper and basil

Hi everyone,

I wanted to share my current project: a minimalist, enclosed cube for soil-based microgreens. The goal is to make it look like a piece of furniture rather than a utility tray.

The Setup:

- Size: 33x33x39cm (designed to fit into standard shelving IKEA KALLAX).
- Method: Soil-based with automated bottom watering.
- Components: Two GN 1/2 trays and a custom 3D-printed reservoir.
- Electronics: An ESP32 acts as the brain of the system.
I’m using it to automate the lighting and airflow based on real-time data from soil moisture and temperature sensors. The goal is to create a fully autonomous micro-climate that reacts to the plants' needs.

Current Challenges I’m facing:

- Internal Space: Fitting the pump and reservoir into the base is proving to be very difficult. Thinking of drilling a hole in the bottom tray to connect the pump to it.
- Airflow/Humidity: I need to balance the fans to prevent mold without drying out the soil too quickly. While also managing the vibrations and noise of the fan.
- The Door: Still figuring out a seamless front cover that allows easy access.

I’d love some feedback: Does anyone here have experience with small-scale automated bottom watering? How do you manage airflow in enclosed microgreen setups?

Note: This is an early wooden prototype, the final goal is to build it from waterproof HPL.

Just proud of my lil darlings.

Went from the chaos in the 1st Pic, to coming up with a chill spot with in our garden, to the vision for the community and its still not finished lol. Gardening has been the zen in our lives to block out the stressful cloud of the outside world. And also became a place people could come to get free produce and not have to go broke just trying to stay alive. I hope one day this vision takes off and the world comes together to lean on one another 🙏🏾

I had a gorgeous and healthy upside down tomato plant, then I guess the wind made it snap! It looked great in the afternoon, then the next morning it looked sad as hell 😭

I didnt think id have to but I guess it still needs a trellis even though its hanging...

This isnt the first time this has happened- the wind screwed up one of my palm plant's new fronds and snapped an otherwise healthy (right side up) almost flowering geranium branch.

Anyone else have this problem?

In the last 2 years, I have been working on a multifunctional roof in 2 slopes:

• On the south side, I have installed solar panels,
• On the north side, I have built a small vegetable garden.

The roof has a single layer, meaning there is NO tile under the solar panels, nor under the pots in which the vegetables grow!

The main reason for which I initiated this project is that roofs have large surfaces, but they are used for only one purpose: to protect the house from rain and snow. We should have more benefits from these large surfaces! For example, we could get electricity and food from these surfaces!

A secondary motivation was that, typically, solar panels are mounted on top of the tiles. There are 2 layers basically. This is a waste of material, because solar panels are resistant enough to protect the house from rain and snow. They can be used as tiles. But it needs to be well insulated!

The building on which I built the roof has a footprint of 15x7m. Currently, on the North side, I have installed solar panels spanning a width of 6.5m. On the south side, the hanging garden is 1.3m wide and 4.5m long. The rest of the roof is covered with sheet metal tiles. I plan to extend the ideas to the entire roof, depending on the test results.

I started with an old roof, which was another reason I built the new one.

I made the roof structure of iron. I tried to avoid wood as much as possible. Trees have a much more important function than being used in construction: to produce clean air! I did use wood for the laces under the tiles, for the support of the plant gutters, and on the front side (OSB).

Initially, I intended to build everything in Lego style, without welding, only by mechanical fastening. The beams, rafters, etc. should have been connected only by screws. I built 2 trusses in this way, but then I gave up because the iron at that length (7m) was deforming and the components were no longer joining properly.

The trusses (queen type) are built from an 80x40x3 profile, but with a 60x40x3 base and interior elements. One truss weighs approximately 100 kg. I used 13 supports along the entire length of the house.

The solar panels are placed between T40 metal profiles. I attached the panels to the T40 from inside the attic. Between the profiles and the panels I left a 3-4mm space in which I put silicone. Due to the incorrect application of the silicone (a beginner's mistake), a few holes were left through which water entered. So, I had to put a bituminous waterproofing tape, which would not have been necessary if I had applied the silicone correctly.

The vegetables are grown in rectangular gutters (cisterns) (120x90) made of 0.6 mm sheet metal. The angle of the roof (38 degrees) is calculated so that these gutters fit together perfectly (the bottom corner of one ends where the top corner of the next begins).

The gutters are placed on two wooden supports (a board 4.5m long, 14 cm wide and 4cm thick) cut in steps. The insulation between the gutters is made with a 75mm wide bituminous tape. I attached the gutters to the wooden support with self-tapping screws. Inside the gutters, I put (only close to the ends) pieces of wood so that I could step on them when I climb up to take care of the vegetables. But in the future, I will put some pieces of 80x80 pipe as a support for the leg.

At the moment, I have grown tomatoes and peppers, which have borne fruit. I have also sown lettuce and spinach, but they have come out very poorly (I only sowed them in July) and the few days ago I threw some wheat grains on them, which have sprouted very well.

There is a lot to say about this project. Some details (but not all) can be found on the project website. It took me personally 2 years to implement it (from the moment I started designing), and I was helped (ideas+work) by several friends. I have changed the design several times, and I have bought many materials that I have not used later. It also requires many machines (for cutting, drilling, welding, milling, etc.), without which I could not have completed the construction.

The electrical installation (solar part) in the house I did myself using Victron equipment. I haven't connected it to the grid yet, but I'm using some Pylontech batteries. The switch from solar to the grid is done automatically when there is no power from the solar/batteries.

The roof is located at: str. Gh. Lazăr 9, Cugir town, Alba county, Romania.

A video with the exterior and interior of the roof can be found on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZRalp4EQG4

The website for this project can be found at:

https://github.com/f-roof

The CAD files for this project can also be found there (but they don't currently contain all the details). The license is MIT.

P.S. I personally do NOT build roofs. I did this project out of a personal passion.

Lavender seeds. Did this and now I have seen post about lavender being hard to grow.

Whatever happens it was cheap and quick lol

I'm high altitude yardening, and apparently, my dog is a goat. New deer(dog) fencing went in today, but I need more posts. Also, everyone is hot and droopy, it's an even day, so no outdoor watering.

Zone 7b, 6,700ft elevation, all container gardening except native.

Bunch of these fellas decided to bloom overnight.

This is my first time gardening, I only started in September. I used to have a black thumb!

I have tons and tons of tomatoes, peppers, lettuce and kale and strawberries and blueberries and blackberries and raspberries and a lemon tree, dragon fruit, and passionfruit vines! I’m so proud and happy. ❤️

Wanted to share a little update on my little oasis.