March 2, 2013

This is my son Tim’s rooftop garden. Read my last post, Part 1 of Roots in Downtown LA. Here’s how Tim put it together.

He bought this Large Mixing Tub at Home Depot for $12.65 then drilled 3/8 inch holes about every six inches for drainage. I gave him some  landscape fabric I had and he cut a piece to fit the bottom.

A layer of gravel about 1.5 inches deep came next and then another piece of landscape fabric to keep the soil from washing out of the planter.

Tim mixed equal parts of my compost with a high quality organic potting soil and a handful of Dr. Earth Organic Tomato and Vegetable Fertilizer.

Water Storing Crystals may not be organic, but they swell to retain water and release it gradually back into the soil. The rooftop location is warm and unforgiving even in the winter.

Tim and I talked by phone about the arrangement of the transplants, then he sent a photo for my final approval.

And here’s Tim with his rooftop garden. I helped his friend do a similar garden which she put on sawhorses. She grew lettuce, spinach, beets, baby carrots and radishes on her balcony..

And you can grow a garden like this on your sunny balcony, patio or rooftop.