Planning an edible balcony garden for 2022 up from the compost

Still in deep winter although with a lovely sunny day that gifted us with 10 degrees that feel like 20 under the sun, I can already begin to plan my edible garden. And of course, to check on this winter’s compost.

After 2020 and 2021 with my balcony dominated by planted flowers and wildflowers, in 2022 I plan to grow back a personal grocery store.

Winter is time to get started with compost. Or in my case, to simply check the one I’m preparing since the late 2021 summer.

Why do I make compost? Because I don’t see the point of buying something that you can make for free, even more when the procedure to make it helps you recycle kitchen and garden wastes. And also, I admit it, just because!

After I used up last summer’s compost, I began a new bin in the same Ikea bag I always use. That bag works perfectly well and suits me for the volumes I handle. For the sake of clarity, I’m not talking about a bag specific for compost but just the regular bag you can purchase at the shop to bring home everything you’ve bought.

I added the last scraps to that compost by mid-December, and never touched it again. One and a half months later than the last addition -and around 4 months since I started this compost- I checked how the process is going.

I first tip the bag upside down and moved it a bit. I quickly detect several good signs: most scraps have already decomposed, there is no bad smell at all, and I see some bugs around: a single spider, several earthworms, and a couple of centipedes.

That white stuff is a biodegradable bag, which I remember throwing sometime in October or November with wet compostable stuff in it. Maybe yerba mate, not sure. The biodegradable bag has degraded only partially, so I will give it a hand by chopping it up:

Let’s see what else we find. Several earthworms, which grow healthy when the compost is maturing so I’m happy to see them around:

Seeds. Well, these are a problem. They don’t die unless the compost reaches high temperatures, but this compost has been growing mostly throughout the winter. The compost matured slowly without developing temperature, and it will likely not heat up because it’s already quite advanced.

Having checked that it’s coming perfectly -other than for the seeds- it’s time to pack the compost back into the Ikea bad. After stirring to mix it up (the bottom was more humid and more mature, while the top was quite dry and still needs some more time to degrade) I put everything back inside the bag. As I explained in a previous story, I place branches below and then add the growing compost on top. In this way, if too much water enters the bag, it will go down and not rot the organic material.

I haven’t watered this compost in at least three months, and it’s going ok. So I will not water it again.

I simply place it back under that table, and will now wait until at least march for a further check -just adding a bit of water now and then if the weather is too dry and not cold for several consecutive days.

Next? Time to plan the edible garden

Now that the compost is going ok, I still have a couple of months until mid-spring to think about what I want to grow. Things that I can just find across the street are not too fun, so I will try to go with some exotic tomatoes and leaves. I still have time to think and consult my gardening friends around Europe.

Do you have any ideas about what I should plant? Or any experiences to share on an edible balcony garden?

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