At the moment I’m designing my balcony garden. My partner and I recently* moved from a standalone house with a large outdoor space to an apartment with a medium sized balcony, and decided that our collection of plants and patio furniture no longer fit with the more modern style of our new home. Both properties are rentals, so the scope I have to work with has been limited, but given how much we like to be outside I’ve decided to try to make our little balcony into a beautiful space to be.

Our old house had a very different microclimate to our current apartment, so a lot of the plants we once had are no longer suitable, and it’s been fun throwing around new themes and design ideas. This process got me to thinking about some of the key elements to consider when creating an outdoor balcony garden, and so I’ve compiled a list of tips from my lessons learnt.

Microclimates

Knowing your microclimatic conditions is central to a thriving garden. Where the sun sets, how much rain you get, and what the temperatures are throughout the year will help you select the right plant species for your design.

Theme

One mistake I used to make before studying landscape design was not having a clear theme in mind before putting pen to paper. This lead to lots of eclectic** designs that weren’t always very consistent or pretty. I’d also tire very quickly of plants, pots and furniture when things weren’t gelling. This time, I settled on a theme before picking any plants or furniture. Having visited a couple of years ago, I fell in love with the brightness and gardens of the Amalfi Coast, and decided to create a space perfect for sipping Aperol Spritzes and limoncello.

This succulent is one of the only few plants that I've kept from my old garden. It goes nicely in between my new outdoor setting. Once the design is completely finished, I'll share some images of the whole thing.

Plan

Sometimes it can be tempting to jump straight in and purchase a heap of plants, but the best thing to do is to plan out your design before making any purchase. Consider which plants are best suited to different places in the garden (thinking about microclimates and species selection), which areas you’ll use for living or dining spaces, and then draw out a detailed plan prior to picking up the shovel or heading to the nursery.

Form and Colour

When planning, consider the shapes, sizes and style of plants and hardscaping. Try to get a good balance between different sizes, shapes and forms of plants. Another thing I’ve learnt over the years is to not be afraid of using colour. Even if it’s just a splash here and there on a mostly monotone, contemporary palette, it can bring a vibrancy and personality to the design that really finishes it off.

Geraniums are common on the Amalfi Coast so this is one of the plants I've selected to add some colour.

*Almost a year ago, but it’s 2020 so…

**Eclectic designs aren’t always a bad thing!