From my apartment balcony, you can feast your eyes on the most spectacular view of the city of Melbourne.
However, the balcony is short of anything spectacular. In fact, its bare and ugly - used as a storage for junk.
Last week, I've decided that I've had enough and decided to deck up my balcony. It was a pretty whimsical idea, impulsively decided while I was having a shower. Later that night, I spent a good few hours reading up on different potted plants to buy. And oh boy, it wasn't as easy as I thought it would be.
I imagined myself driving over to the nursery, pick out a few potted plants and ta-da, the balcony will be all so nice and pretty. But alas, good things never come easy.
To my surprise and amusement, there are so many factors to consider. Firstly, the wind. Because I live pretty high up, it tends to get pretty windy out on the balcony. Hence, I can't buy plants that are too small in case they topple over. On the flip side, I can't buy plants that are too big because my balcony is tiny.
The wind also causes plants to dry out quicker. Hence, I need to buy pots that are less susceptible to drying out the roots (terracotta pots dry out plant roots quicker than other pots).
Also because its a covered balcony, it doesn't get the full sun (more than 6 hours of sunlight). It gets sunlight only in the morning but no afternoon sun. It was only when I was at the nursery did I realise that most plants (especially flowering plants) needed full sun .
Plus, what kind of soil do I use?!? And how much do I water? Do I water a little everyday or do I water a lot at a time but only every other day? Did you know that plants need good drainage system, otherwise the roots will rot?
And I needed to get a set of table and chairs. I didn't want anything too expensive yet I didn't want anything too cheap-looking.
So much to think about!
After a couple of stressed-out days, I've finally redecorated my balcony.
I hopped onto gumtree and scouted for a garden set. I came across this beautiful garden set for a decent price. The table top is made of solid marble. And if you study the table closely, you'll notice imprints of fossils on the marble top. The heaviness of it is good to withstand the strong winds. I also like how it has a french feel to it and the colour matches the balcony tiles.
The plant in the gray pot is a Begonia. The fantastic thing about this flowering plant is that it doesn't need the full sun. In fact, in thrives in the partial shade.
In the hanging rattan basket are daisies, lavender and coriander.
On the left, is my little yet-to-grow herb garden in the wooden wheelburrow and in the small pots. I've sowed some thai basil and thyme seeds. Hopefully I'll see little sprouts in a few weeks *cross fingers*
I've painted this painting orange to match the orange-y flowers.
That's an orange million bells plant. This is suppose to be trailing plant. I'm hoping that it will grow and the flowers will overhang from the iron cage. That will be a beautiful sight (if it's still alive by then!)
More plants on the other side of my balcony. In that gray pot is premium potting mix. It's most convenient (but expensive unfortunately) to buy premium potting mix for container plants.
On the table is an oil lamp. I absolutely adore the lamp. It's made of a beautiful white stone and the heavy weight is once again, great for battling strong winds. The oil I bought is suppose to keep mosquitoes away.
On the left is a gardenia plant. In the white pot is rosemary. In the yellow pot is Birds of Paradise which will hopefully produce beautiful colourful flowers. (Can't remember the names of the other two plants).
Silver falls. A foliaged plant which is ideal for hanging baskets.
The past few days, I've been having my breakfast out on the balcony while watching the city pass me by. It's a wonderful feeling. It's these little pleasures that mean so much sometimes...
Now, the trick lies in maintaining and nurturing this garden =)
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