You can garden even without a yard

Finding the right amount of sun and space for your vegetable garden can be as stressful as a heat wave for your tomato plants.

But you can grow your own veggies with just a driveway.

Timothy McDermott, extension education for Ohio State’s College of Food, Agriculture and Environmental Services, uses his own driveway to grow lettuce, spinach and bok choy.

He says driveway gardening is a popular topic in urban agriculture since not everyone has access to a sunny backyard or a community garden.

McDermott says first head in the right direction.

“For veggies, herbs and fruit, a south face with no shade and full sun is best. If you have less than that, then try for as much as possible and make sure to pick varieties that mature quicker, such as most of the cool season veggies and leafy greens.”

A good next step is picking your container. McDermott says makes sure it has drainage and the larger the better to not overcrowd plants, and for the soil, think quality.

“That container contains all the soil the plant will have, and plants take up their water and nutrients from the soil, so the more soil, the larger and stronger root system.”

Of course, there are some obstacles to your driveway garden.

1) Pavement in the summer can really heat up and that’s not good for plants. McDermott says spring and fall are better.

2) Neighborhood deer, birds and rabbits may try to help themselves.

McDermott says bird netting can come in handy. Driveway gardening may not be just for the urban environment.

If you are not ready to commit space in your yard to the garden, look for a porch or driveway and you may be cruising your way to your first garden.

Our team of meteorologists dives deep into the science of weather and breaks down timely weather data and information. To view more weather and climate stories, check out our weather blogs section.