How to grow vegetables or fruits on a terrace?

The importance of the orientation of your vegetable garden on a terrace

To push and produce fruits and vegetables, a young plant needs adequate light, and therefore sunlight. This is why it is essential that your terrace receives a minimum of 6 hours of sunlight per day so that you can grow a wide range of vegetables or fruits.

For a productive vegetable garden, a terrace facing south-east or south-west is ideal, as the rays of the sun will provide all the energy necessary for the plant to develop. However, remember to place the young plants with the largest growth at the back to avoid creating artificial shading that could be detrimental to sun-loving vegetables. On the other hand, salads may appreciate a partially shaded position.

A terrace facing south-west or south-east is ideal for a vegetable garden

If your terrace is exposed to drafts or wind, do not hesitate to install a windbreak. Reed screens are suitable as they promote ventilation while blocking the wind.

However, if your terrace is shaded or partially shaded, all is not lost. You will likely have to give up on sun-loving vegetables like tomatoes, aubergines, and peppers, but you can easily grow salads, cabbages, watercress, spinach, rocket, or even radishes. Similarly, some aromatic plants like parsley, tarragon, and mint… adapt easily to shade.

Some layout tips can also reflect sunlight: paint a wall in a light colour, install mirrors, or use light-coloured mulch…

The most suitable containers for growing vegetables on a terrace

Inutile de rappeler que, sur une terrasse, votre potager sera cultivé hors-sol. Donc le choix des contenants est primordial.

Simple pots, jardinières et bacs

The simplest solution lies in installing pots, planters, or containers that you can choose in plastic, wood, or terracotta. However, a few precautions are necessary:

• Don’t forget to place clay balls at the bottom of these containers to ensure proper drainage of the substrate and thus prevent root rot. If you wish, you can also cover the layer of clay balls with a geotextile felt to prevent the soil from blocking the drainage hole.
• Check that the containers have drainage holes. If they don’t, drill them.
• Opt for containers that are deep enough (at least 30 cm) to allow vegetables and fruits to develop their roots properly. Moreover, the larger the pot, the slower the substrate dries out.
• Dare to recycle by repurposing or hunting for pots that you can paint in your colours.
• Remember to place a saucer under each container to prevent water leaks on the terrace. However, try not to let water stagnate in the saucers to avoid, among other things, the proliferation of mosquitoes.

  Vegetables can indeed be grown in pots

→ For further reading, discover Jean-Christophe’s article on the cultivation, maintenance, and care of potted plants.

Wooden raised bed garden

The raised bed gardening technique involves growing vegetables and small fruits in wooden squares of about 1.20 by 1.20 m, divided into 6 or 9 sections. Quite aesthetic, these raised beds allow for a large number of vegetables to be grown, provided you are diligent about planning your sowing or planting.

Widely available commercially, these raised beds are also very easy to make with untreated formwork boards or even pallets.

However, this solution can only be adopted on a terrace if you line the inner walls of the raised bed with a waterproof tarpaulin. This will prevent watering runoff on the terrace. And don’t forget the clay balls.

To understand everything, read Ingrid’s article on raised bed gardening.

Raised planter

Similar to the raised bed, the raised planter differs in that it has… legs! It is therefore an elevated garden that allows you to grow vegetables or fruits literally within reach. It is ideal for avoiding back pain.

The raised planter is perfectly suited for the terrace

Generally, the standard height is around 80 to 100 cm. It is more often rectangular than square. It is easily found commercially, either in treated wood or plastic. However, you can also easily make it with untreated boards or pallets. Just ensure you have sturdy legs and a tarpaulin for waterproofing.

Gardening bags or vegetable bags

These planting bags are perfectly suited for a terrace garden. Made from geotextile fabrics in various sizes, the growing bags ensure excellent ventilation of the root system while preventing roots from becoming root-bound. Lightweight and durable, they are also easy to install.

Often made from recycled materials, these planting bags are therefore eco-friendly while being very practical. Generally, watering needs are lower and the vegetable plant is better kept cool due to the composition of the container. Finally, these vegetable bags are biodegradable.

Today, it is even possible to find fabric raised beds that unfold and set up in less than 5 minutes.

→ Ingrid tells you more in her article Urban gardening, it’s all in the bag!

Vertical garden

On a terrace, the available space can be limited. However, you can also gain space by growing vertically. A little ingenuity is all it takes to create a 3D garden:

• Stacked pots on a nice shelving unit or a sturdy trellis
• Hanging gardening bags
• Gutters inspired by planters to grow strawberries or salads
• Palettes lined with tarps and placed vertically
• Trellises for climbing vegetable plants like squash

Essential Small Tools and Compost

Every good gardener needs good tools! Whether in a traditional vegetable garden or a raised bed on a terrace. Of course, if you’re growing your garden on a terrace, there’s no need to acquire a spade, rake, or hoe.

However, you will need to equip yourself with the essentials for an effective gardener, but in a mini version. The gardening kit should contain at least a small planting spade or dibber, a cultivator, a small pick, and a mini-rake to turn and aerate the soil. Opt for stainless steel to ensure they last long, and remember to clean them after each use. You can also add a pruning shear, which is always useful, and especially the essential watering can and a sprayer.

Finally, whatever containers you choose, they need to be filled with substrate. A mix of good potting soil and garden soil is ideal, but if you don’t have garden soil available, potting soil alone will suffice, provided you choose a very high quality one. Indeed, this potting soil should be rich in nutrients and ensure good water retention. For example, choose a horticultural potting soil or, even better, a potting soil specially suited for raised beds.

Which vegetables to grow and harvest on a terrace?

At the outset, for a vegetable garden on a terrace, you will need to forgo certain vegetables that either take up a lot of space or require deep rooting. Therefore, forget about asparagus or even potatoes, which remain in the soil for a long time.

On the other hand, some vegetables adapt very well to cultivation in a limited space:

• Salads, particularly cut-and-come-again varieties like oak leaf, which can be harvested one to one and a half months after sowing.
• Radishes are easy and quick to grow. Foolproof, they just need to be watered regularly.
• Carrots, provided you choose early varieties or round-rooted types, such as Paris Market carrots. They require a deep container.
• Tomatoes are the queens of balcony or terrace gardens. Of course, cherry tomatoes are perfect, but all varieties can be easily grown in pots.
• Peppers and chillies are also perfectly suited for pot cultivation. However, they do require plenty of sunlight.
• Aubergines can also be easily grown on a terrace, with maximum sunlight and plenty of water.
• Cucumbers and courgettes, but you should choose varieties that can be easily trained and will grow vertically on a trellis.
• Climbing beans or Spanish beans can also be grown vertically.

Of course, all these vegetables can be sown indoors or outdoors, but for terrace cultivation, it may be preferable to focus on plug plants or pot plants. Easy to transplant, they will reach ripeness more quickly.

Discover with Ingrid the benefits of planting plug vegetable plants.

You can also try seed tapes, which are very practical for a terrace vegetable garden. Alexandra explains how to sow seeds on tape.

Indulge yourself with all the herbs and aromatic plants you desire. All can be grown in pots or containers. Moreover, they will be within reach to enhance your dishes.

Fruits on a terrace? It's possible too!

Do you fancy smoothies or delicious desserts made from fruits? You should know that you can also grow fruits on a terrace. And, in this regard, almost anything is possible.

• Strawberries are the most suitable fruits for container growing as they thrive very well in pots or even in gutters or hanging baskets.

• Small fruits like raspberries, currants, blueberries… also grow quite easily on a terrace, as they benefit from good resilience.
• Citrus trees can be considered provided you have a well-lit room with a temperature between 8 and 12 °C to store them in winter.
• Apples, pears, peaches, cherries… but in miniature form. Indeed, dwarf fruit trees are perfect for enhancing a terrace with their spring flowering while providing juicy fruits. Discover how to plant and care for these dwarf fruit trees with Ingrid. As for Virginie, she presents a selection of 10 varieties of fruit trees perfect for a terrace.
• A vine is possible if you provide it with a sturdy trellis and plenty of sunlight.

What care do pot plants need on a terrace?

Cultivated in soilless conditions, vegetables have less soil than in a family garden. The medium dries out more quickly. This is why than in open ground. In the height of summer, you will need to water every day, preferably in the morning or evening. Mulching is therefore even more recommended, as it helps retain a certain level of moisture. To avoid constant trips to the sink, consider investing in a small water collector if you have access to a downspout.