Photo: fiveforefun / Flickr

The National Trust, with its Veg on the Ledge campaign, aims to see 600 acres of window ledges in the UK turned into vegetable patches. It’s possible to grow your own vegetables even if you don’t have a vegetable garden or access to an allotment. All you need is a sunny windowsill, some nutrient-rich potting soil, and careful watering. Start by experimenting with hardy plants like, cherry tomatoes, cabbage, lettuce and beetroot.

Getting started

While growing vegetables from seed is fairly easy, buying young plants from a nursery has faster results. Ask the nursery to recommend vegetable plants for indoor growing.

When it comes to choosing the pots you’ll grow your veg in, go for either ceramic or plastic – but make sure there are drainage holes at the bottom of the pots.

You’ll also need some potting soil, which should be lightweight and drain well. Adding river sand or perlite to normal potting soil will help with drainage.

Potting

Get your pots ready for planting by placing some small rocks on the bottom, over the drainage holes, then covering these with a few inches of soil. Gently take your vegetable plants out of their planters, holding them at the base, and place them in their pots. Fill with soil, but be careful not to cover the base of the plants. Then water with some diluted liquid fertiliser – preferably organic.

Lighting

Vegetables need plenty of light to grow. They should be placed on a windowsill that gets at least six hours of light a day. To grow veg in winter you should supplement natural light with grow lights, which you can easily order online.

Watering

Most veggies like to dry out a little between watering. Water thoroughly when you do, but be sure that any excess water drains out of the bottom of the pot. Always empty the plants’ drainage trays after watering.

If you’re keen to find out more about growing Veg on the Ledge, visit the National Trust’s website.

Tags: gardening, vegetables