By Tony Manhart of Gardening Dream
While the idea of having plants in your home may seem like an excellent thing to do, it will be even more practical if you know which plants can thrive on your environment.
In this guide, we focus on a Mediterranean climate and offer you a few plants that will do well in your home, your balcony or on your roof deck in a hot, dry climate.
Edible Plants That Grow Well In A Mediterranean Climate
When you are planning your Mediterranean garden, consider what vegetables you are can grow. You can grow tomato plants and enjoy your own home grown tomato sauce, and you can grow a small amount of basil to add flavor to your pasta sauce.
If you love salads, add lettuce to your garden so that you can eat your own freshly picked romaine, lola, spinach or arugula. To grow lettuce, you will need to sow your seeds a few weeks before you plan to harvest them.
Plants That Grow Well On A Balcony In A Hot Mediterranean Climate
- The orange tree
Used for centuries to produce sweet-tasting fruit, orange trees are surprisingly easy to grow.
All you need is a pot, soil, fertilizer, and a sunny spot. If you live in a dry area, the orange tree will provide many benefits to your home. The fruit has a high vitamin C content, so it is good for your immune system. Orange flowers are very attractive, so you will get plenty of compliments on your home. And you are helping the environment as trees clean the air and eat greenhouse gases.
- The grapevine
These plants can grow almost anywhere as long as you have appropriate soil and sun. You may have to use fertilizer to help your grapevines grow quickly. A grapevine is also very easy to care for. You can trim it back to keep it trimmed and to remove dead leaves.
- The lemon tree
These trees require a lot of water and a warm climate. You must also be patient because they grow slowly. Lemon trees are particularly good for cleaning the air. If you are having a lot of air pollution, growing a lemon tree in your home might be a good choice.
- The fig tree
These trees can grow in dry areas, although they are more common in tropical climates. Figs can grow in pots, but they are best grown in the ground. These trees provide a lot of benefits to the home including shade and the delicious figs themselves.
- The cactus
These plants are common in many parts of the world. These plants can grow in dry areas. A cactus is not a plant. These are the leaves of a desert plant. The cactus plant does not have roots.
You may be able to find a variety of cacti at your local garden center. They are available in many different sizes and colors. You can grow them in a pot or on the ground. These plants can also provide a lot of benefits for the home.
- Olive tree
The Olive trees can live for up to 400 years and some varieties are ornamental and will never produce fruit. This evergreen tree needs full sun and a minimum of 6 hours of sunlight per day to grow, so growing it on your balcony is the best idea. They have small requirements in terms of soil and watering and you can even grow them in wood or clay pots.
The best time to plant your olive tree is Spring, plant your tree in soil with good drainage and prune it from time to time to keep its shape.
Potted Plants That Like Full Sun
If you have a house that gets a lot of direct sun during the day, there are plenty of plants that prefer this climate. These are called ‘sun lovers,’ and many of these plants have flowers that turn red, orange, or yellow when the plant is under direct sunlight. They include hibiscus, bougainvillea, spider lilies, and petunias.
Final Words On “Plants That Would Do Well On A Balcony In A Hot Mediterranean Climate”
Many plants would do well on a balcony in a hot Mediterranean climate and a good balcony plant should also look good and provide benefits to your living space. The right plants for the balcony will improve air quality and create a soothing environment.