Posts by Alexander Whaley

My first balcony garden looked fine on paper: tough plants, big pots, sunny aspect. Two windy weekends later, the leaves crisped, soil pulled away from the pot edges, and “hardy” plants...

I learned to stop guessing after I crisped a tray of lettuces on a west-facing balcony and then shaded my tomatoes into silence the very next year. Apartment balconies swing from dim to desert...

I started growing strawberries in hanging baskets on a tiny balcony because slugs kept beating me to every ripe berry. The first year I picked a handful; the second year I was harvesting bowls weekly...

I once tucked a small mint start beside my basil in a window box. By July, the basil was a memory and mint stems were poking out the drainage holes like green octopus arms. I’ve repeated that test...

I started my balcony herb rail with six hopeful pots and a big mistake: I treated winter like a shorter summer. By January, the basil was mush, the rosemary sulked, and only the chives looked smug....

My first balcony tomato looked great until July, then collapsed under its own weight and dried out in a weekend heatwave. I had picked the wrong variety, tied it to a flimsy stake, and watered like a...