Small Space Garden Ideas for Renters
From growing your own herbs to brightening up your patio with flowers, you can find many reasons to start your own garden at home.
One obstacle that could keep you from creating your own mini oasis, however, is a lack of space. Even if you have a big enough outdoor area to start a garden, lacking storage space in your rental house or apartment can also be an issue for gardening supplies and tools.
Don’t let your square footage stop you from using your green thumb. Discover helpful small space garden ideas below, or contact our team to learn how you can create more room in your home.
Small Patio and Backyard Garden Ideas
Gardening looks different for everyone. While homeowners can get messy and dig in the yard to their hearts’ content, renters need to contact their landlord before gardening. You may have landscaping regulations in your lease that limit or prohibit your options for breaking ground or creating a square foot garden.
If you rent a home, you don’t need a sprawling backyard or huge patio to enjoy gardening—you just have to get creative! Take advantage of small space garden ideas, such as:
Square Foot Gardening for Small Backyards
After you’ve confirmed with your house’s landlord that you can garden in the backyard, square foot gardens are perfect for small outdoor spaces. Unlike a traditional garden where you plant in rows, you divide a square foot garden’s bed into one-foot sections.
Additionally, you’ll create the perimeter of your garden using a raised box or bed and then fill it with the appropriate soil mix.
Following the grid system created by the one-foot sections, space out and plant your seeds based on their packets’ instructions. You can make your square foot garden as small as 1’ x 1’, but a typical square foot garden measures 4’ x 4’.
Gardening Along Your Fence
If you or your landlord are not ready to commit to a square foot garden in the backyard, try using your fence as a built-in trellis. Common plants and flowers that love to climb and grow vertically include moon flowers, morning glories, tomatoes, cucumbers, and more.
Before you dive into fence gardening, check in with your HOA or landlord to avoid violating any regulations related to shared fences.
Urban Gardening for Small Apartments
Creating space of any kind in an apartment often requires thinking outside the box. Unlike rental houses, apartments have much more rigid landscaping regulations. Your gardening spot is limited to a few common spaces: your patio, balcony, or windowsill.
Fortunately, small apartment gardens, or “urban” gardens, thrive on limited space. Just like with square foot gardens and fence gardening, you can flex your green thumb by using small garden space ideas for your apartment or townhouse.
Vertical Gardening for Patios and Balconies
Go vertical with your garden. A vertical garden uses columnar trees, trellises, and other structures to grow plants without taking up too much space. In addition to using less room, a vertical garden can give your patio or balcony a unique look. Create a “flower tower,” or use a trellis to make a privacy fence.
Use Window Boxes for Small Space Gardening
When you want to enjoy having a garden without giving up patio or balcony space, choose window boxes. Depending on the type of window box you use, you can attach these helpful gardening structures to your railing or windowsill. Your apartment may even have a window box already installed!
If you’re concerned about your flowers accidentally taking a dive on windy days, choose window boxes with feet. These space-saving troughs sit and fit well on your patio or balcony without taking up too much room.
Keep Your Gardening Gear in Self Storage
Your apartment or rental home may have enough space for your small garden, but what about for your gardening tools and supplies? Trowels, shears, weeders, and other tools take up valuable space in your house or apartment. Extra pots and troughs can also clutter your limited closet space. If you have extra gardening supplies and tools, create more room in your living space with self storage. Freedom Storage Management can help you find an affordable, convenient self storage facility near you. From a 5’ x 5’ unit to store gardening tools to a 5’ x 10’ unit to store large vertical planters during the winter, we’ve got you covered.
Enjoy the Freedom of Self Storage for Small Space Gardening
When you’re ready to try your hand at gardening, remember to include self storage in the plans for your small space. At Freedom Storage Management, we help our friends and neighbors make their space work for them with a variety of storage unit sizes and features at affordable prices. Find a Freedom Storage Management-operated storage facility near you today!