FAQ
Questions worth answering honestly
Not "how do I contact you" — the real objections that come up before someone actually starts: their deposit, their inexperience, their time.
Will this get me in trouble with my landlord, or cost me my deposit?
That's the whole premise of the site, not an afterthought: every guide is containers and freestanding beds only — nothing drilled, dug, painted, or permanently attached to the property. Nothing here needs your landlord's permission any more than owning houseplants would. The one thing worth actually checking yourself first is a balcony's weight allowance for containers — that's a genuine building/lease detail, not something a guide can check for you.
I've never grown anything before. Will I just kill everything?
Almost everyone starts here. The guides are written for a genuine first attempt — real pot sizes, real UK sowing dates, and a short realistic list of what to grow first, rather than an ambitious list that assumes existing skill. Some plants will still struggle; that's normal, not a sign you're doing it wrong. Start with the crops flagged as forgiving in each guide before anything trickier.
How much time does this actually take?
Watering is the real recurring cost, not general maintenance — a few minutes most days in summer, less in cooler months, more if your space is windy or gets strong sun (see the note on wind and watering in patio vs balcony growing). Sowing and harvesting are occasional, not daily. It's a realistic hobby to run alongside a full-time job, not a part-time commitment.
Do I need to buy a lot of equipment to get started?
No — a container, peat-free compost, and seeds or young plants covers most of it. The guides specify exact pot sizes rather than telling you to buy an assortment "just in case", and nothing in them assumes a shed, a greenhouse, or tools beyond a trowel and a watering can.
My space is tiny — is it actually worth trying?
A single windowsill genuinely can produce real food (see what vegetables actually work on a windowsill) — it won't replace a weekly shop, but it's not a token gesture either. The honest limit is scale, not whether it's worth doing: a small space grows meaningfully less than a garden, not nothing.
Is this actually evidence-based, or just one person's opinion dressed up as advice?
Both, honestly — it starts with 10+ years of actually growing this stuff, and RHS guidance or published research gets threaded in wherever a claim needs backing up. If a popular tip turns out not to hold up, we say so rather than repeating it. More on the approach is on the About page, if you want it.
Something else on your mind? Ask directly — every message gets read.