Want to Plant a Garden on Your Deck? Here Are 12 Tips to Help It Flourish (2024)

The true beauty of planting a garden is that you don’t need a huge yard to grow flowers, herbs, and vegetables. You can create a flourishing container garden right on your deck. Here are some tips for planting on a deck that will have you growing a lush array of flowers, herbs, fruits, and veggies in no time.

Consider the Whole Space

Don’t think of your deck in terms of floor space alone—after all, you’re arranging a garden, not patio furniture. There are planters built to hang from or sit atop deck rails, for example, so you have more to consider than simply placing pots on the deck floor

Choose Vessels Wisely

Select pots and containers that offer plants room to grow. Opt for self-watering planters that drain themselves to avoid root rot. Here are some planter options:

• Plant stands: These make the most of the vertical space on your deck, plus they keep excess water from pooling on the planks. Choose stands that allow for more than one container, so you can truly make your garden grow.
• Hanging baskets: Secure lightweight container plants from hooks on the awning or eave of your roof.
• Deck planters: Some have brackets or hooks to hang off deck rails, while others are designed to sit atop the rails.
• Elevated gardens: Great for herbs and vegetables, these are platforms raised up several feet above the deck for easy tending and pruning.

Assess the Light

There’s something standing in the way of your deck getting adequate sunlight: your house. Be sure to note the sunniest/shadiest areas of your deck, then arrange your plantings according to their needs.

Arrange Convenient Access to Water

Container gardens dry out much faster than garden beds, so don’t rely on the rain forecast for hydration. Ideally, you’ll have a spigot close by, but do buy an extra-long garden hose if your containers are far away from it.

Pick Plants Appropriate for Containers

Some vegetables and flowers need plenty of room to grow, but there are others that will thrive in the confines of the container. If you want certain types of plants in your deck garden, do your research—you will likely find that there are hardier varieties of those plants that will do just fine in containers. For starters:

• Tomatoes
• Peppers
• Lettuce
• Herbs
• Beans
• Begonias
• Marigolds
• Coleus
• Lavender

Plant Herbs

Even if you’re not too keen on natural seasoning, herbs can help vegetables and plants grow. Thyme especially happens to get along well with many other plants, but consider other companion plants for your specific garden layout.

Choose the Correct Soil

Container gardens need potting soil, not regular garden soil. The dirt might look the same as outdoor soil, but the nutrients within it are what matters for your container plants.

Fertilize

Even the right soil needs fertilizer. Choose the right one for what you're growing, whether it's a vegetable or a flowering plant, and feed your plants according to the recommended schedule on the box.

Add Garden Tool Storage

Arrange a decorative container—covered is best to avoid rust—to store gardening tools like a trowel, pruning shears, and a hand fork. It’ll be more convenient if these are kept nearby so you don’t have to retrieve them from the shed or garage.

Keep Pollinator Plants Away from Seating Areas

Let’s be clear: Bees and other pollinators are a good thing to have in your garden. But right by your favorite patio chair? Not so much. When designing your garden’s placement, keep any pollinator plants away from seating areas.

Add Weather Protection

If you live in a region where your deck might be covered with snow and ice for weeks at a time, then you’ll need a plan to either bring plants inside or cover them with a tarp or other protective gear so that they’re not damaged by the cold.

Before you pick your plants, decide if you're willing to bring them inside or care for them in winter. If not, go for annuals.

Plan an Attractive Layout

Have fun arranging your plants by color, by type, or by container size. If you’ve got a variety growing, don’t forget to place companion plants near each other so they can support each other’s growth.

How to Grow Vegetables on a Deck

Vegetables are more challenging to grow in containers than beds, but don’t give up on your dream of having instant salad ingredients waiting on your deck. Here is some food for thought:

• Give them plenty to drink. Read up on the hydration needs of your veggies and herbs and fulfill them. Remember, container gardens dry out quickly, so in hot weather, this could mean more than one watering per day.
• Choose deep containers. Aim for containers and planters 12 to 18 inches deep to encourage strong root systems.
• Cut/replant as necessary. Pruning is key to any healthy garden, but especially for ones that can easily outgrow their containers. Be sure to harvest your veggies when they’re ready, and replant them when they’re getting too overgrown in their current containers.