How to Build a Window Garden

If you have a passion for gardening, building gardens on your window sills is the best way to decorate, refresh, and reap the benefits of your windows. The window box garden can be of herbs, flowering plants, foliage, or any plants you like which will add beauty to your home. For those who live in apartments in urban areas having a mini garden outside their windows will enliven and beautify living space.

Garden windows are growing in popularity and now vinyl garden windows with shelving to place plants in pots are available and these can be constructed outside windows. There are technologically advanced planters available, with arrangements for pumping water that are ready to use or which can be assembled. When you decide on adding window sill gardens to your home it is good to make use of helpful advice and tips that help in creating a beautiful mini garden outside your home windows.

Setting Up a Window Garden

The first step is to select the space for the window garden. This depends on the types of plants that will be grown as some plants need more sunlight and others can get by with less and grow in shaded spots. You can set up the mini garden outside two or more windows depending on your convenience and needs.

Select the Right Planters and Pots  

Next, choose the types of planters, window box, or pots that you would be using. You can use terra cotta, boxes made from concrete, fabricated window garden boxes, plastic, or metal depending on what fits your windows and budget best.

An important point to remember is that there should be room for the plants to grow inside these planters and windows should be able to be opened without any obstruction. The window box should be fastened strongly to the siding or masonary before plants are placed and soil is added. Drainage holes should be provided for excess water to drain out.

There are synthetic coatings that can be added if you are constructing your own planters. There should be enough drainage and adding a bottom layer of crushed stones before the soil is added is helpful to prevent water draining out completely.

Choose Your Plants

You can select the type of plants, vegetables, herbs, or foliage that you wish to grow in your window garden. Flowering and leafy plants look pretty and dress up your windows to advantage. Herbs, fruits or vegetables can be used with health benefits for you and family but you need to select the types that will grow easily in window arrangements.

Some homeowners prefer to start with seeds and others like to plant cuttings or saplings bought from stores. Get all the information on how to grow the particular plants you have planted and follow instructions for growing and watering, for best results. Plants that flourish in a particular season, with similar light and water requirement and growth should be grown together, even if the mini garden is a combination of flowering and leafy variety.

Caring and Getting the Most of Your Mini Garden

Always use top quality potting mix soil and fertilizers so that your garden blooms and grows well. If there is space for pots of different sizes you need to raise the smaller ones to be in line with larger pots by using blocks of wood or other strong material. You can also add fresh new plants when the older seasonal varieties are past their prime. Always keep the soil moist and provide liquid fertilization at regular intervals.

The best aspect of window gardens is that you have a fantastic variety of choice. You can select rare types of foliage, plants that grow throughout the year, bonsai, assortment of flowering types and many others. You can even grow small radishes, peppers, carrots, chives, or cilantro among others, if kitchen garden is your choice.

Your window garden will be a source of beauty and you and the family will view this extended space with pleasure. It adds to the value of your home and you can change plants to match each season for maximum utilization of space.