Raised bed on the balcony — what actually works

Balcony raised beds are more popular than ever. But putting a ground bed on the balcony is no small thing: weight, drainage, sun. Here's the honest guide.

Weight — the first showstopper

A filled raised bed is heavy. Rule of thumb: 1 litre of moist soil ≈ 1.5 kg. A 120×60×40 cm balcony bed = 288 L = ~430 kg filled.

Your balcony is usually rated for ~250-400 kg/m². For a 0.7 m² bed, 430 kg = 615 kg/m² — potentially too much.

Workaround: lighter fill — styrofoam or wood-chip layer at the bottom (instead of heavy soil), only 20 cm of planting soil on top. Saves 30-40% weight.

Minimum depth

• 15 cm for lettuce, radish, herbs
• 25 cm for tomatoes, carrots, peppers
• 40 cm for parsnips, deep-root crops

Most off-the-shelf balcony beds are 30-35 cm — enough for nearly anything except parsnips.

Drainage

Balcony beds need water outlets. Most kits have drilled holes underneath, but soil settles and clogs them. Lay a geotextile fabric, then 3-5 cm of gravel, then the soil. Water drains, soil stays.

Variety selection — compact + productive

Top picks for balcony:

• Cherry tomatoes (bush varieties)
• Strawberries (hanging types are extra pretty)
• Radishes (fast turnaround)
• Cut-and-come-again lettuce
• Chives, parsley
• Cocktail peppers in full south

Not for balconies:

• Zucchini (too much space, too many leaves, shades everything)
• Pumpkin (overruns any balcony)
• Pole beans (unless purely as a privacy screen)

Sun and wind

Balconies are often windy (especially upper floors). Tall plants need supports or wind-break walls.

South balcony with midday heat: great for tomatoes, strawberries, peppers. BUT pot/bed soil heats up massively — daily watering mandatory.

North balcony: only shade plants (spinach, lamb's lettuce, chives). No tomato.

My mini-plan: 120×60 cm balcony bed (south)

• 1 bush tomato in one corner (~40 cm tall)
• 1 row cut-and-come-again lettuce in front of the tomato (tomato shade helps in high summer)
• 1 row cherry tomatoes on the other side
• 1 chives + parsley as the herb corner
• 3-5 strawberry plants in the third corner

Harvest profile: lettuce from May, strawberries in June, tomatoes July-October.

In our plant library you'll find each variety with a "balcony-suitable" tag or not. Stachi automatically picks only fitting varieties in the planner when you declare a balcony bed.

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Balcony beds differ from garden beds. Smaller, hotter, needs more summer care. But: one home-grown cherry tomato from your balcony beats five from the supermarket.

🦔 Stachi