The Balcony Gardener: Creative ideas for small spaces

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Sure, a balcony garden more often than not, relies on growing in containers, but that's not to say that you are limited to only using your floor space – far from it. Meghan Markle forced to miss glitzy Beverly Hills ceremony where Prince Harry received a 'Living Legend'. The style can range from fancy to frivolous, depending on your tastes, but the container should be practical and suit the purpose. And now you can see for yourself the results of my green fingers, following a trip to Columbia Road flower market this weekend to pick up an old bucket, inspired by Isabelle’s projects, and some new tomato plants. In 2013, I undertook quite a few projects for the Chelsea fringe along with the front window display for Anthropologie, which always transform into something around the festival.

Stick one of these on the window and fill it with herbs - the smell will be lovely - or add a mix of flowers for a bit more colour. She has always been a keen gardener and began by using her own small balconies to create a little green oasis of her own. Deep purple Black Star morning glory, for example, looks all the more sultry in a pot painted in Bauwerk’s peachy Malibu.

Dreams of 10m-tall magnolias have to be set aside, but there are plenty of plants that will flourish in pots on a balcony. You can match the colour to anything in your interiors, they give a painterly finish and let the pot breathe while still being waterproof. If you've run out of space in the garden or have only a tiny balcony then these are the perfect solution. Isabelle Palmer has created a successful business from her ability to enliven any balcony, roof terrace, and window sill with her inventive gardening ideas. With a background in architecture, Cate also works with homeowners to bring calm and clarity to their interior spaces, with simple solutions that can evolve with them – from full makeovers to furniture sourcing.

Now’s the perfect time to sow vegetable seeds, and with just a few pots on a balcony, you can look forward to harvesting fresh, flavoursome vegetables and herbs. I hope that my work container gardening encourages more urban residents to maximise on their unique growing spaces like a balcony garden. With the right conditions and care, just about every vegetable you can grow in your garden can also be grown on your balcony. It will feature herbs, salads, vegetables, wildflowers and a fish pond to help fertilize the garden.Add to this shade cast by walls, screens and overhangs and you’re looking at a pretty shady spot for growing plants. This book links with the book 'The Extraordinary Gardener by Sam Boughton', the children could create their own balcony gardens in the classroom during an art lesson. You can introduce smaller plants and leave them to mature, but putting larger, more mature plants, from the start creates a better display from the beginning.