By now, you may have heard that produce grown on large farms is prone to pesticides, excess packaging, and carbon emissions from long-distance transportation. Buying locally helps with these issues, but you can also grow your own produce, even with a small home. Imagine the satisfaction of picking your own fruits and veggies straight from the source and using them in your favorite recipes!

Here are 3 ways to grow produce in small spaces:

Lettuce Grow: Vertical Indoor/Outdoor Garden

In their search for fresh and nutritious produce, actress Zooey Deschanel and her husband Jacob Pechenik founded Lettuce Grow and created the Farmstand. The Farmstand is a self-watering and self-fertilizing vertical garden. It uses 95% less water and energy than traditional farming. You can use it outdoors or indoors (you can purchase a light source for the Farmstand if you need more light inside). This is a larger option for growing fruits and veggies indoors, but there are multiple sizes to choose from on their website.

Click & Grow: A Variety of Indoor Garden Solutions

If the Farmstand is a bit too large for your home, our Customer Service Specialist Avalon owns a smaller grow kit that fits right in with her apartment!

"I found them when I was looking for a solution to always wanting fresh cilantro, parsley and basil, and never being able to eat an entire bundle from the grocery without those herbs going bad first. There are a few options like this out there —  I like this one because of its range. It’s also pretty affordable in that there are different sizes rather than getting a giant one right away. I actually got a couple more because I liked the first one so much! The soil pods have the seeds inside already. And once you set the garden up, you just put the soil pod in the holders and make sure there’s water! There’s an automatic light cycle as well. You can keep track of each plant on their app, and it names them, which is fun! It also gives you facts and care tips for each plant. My first seeds started to sprout within a week, and I’ve since grown all the herbs I set out to grow: mustard greens, arugula, and lettuce. Plus, I have a garden just for small veggies with peppers and a pea plant that just sprouted pods! I highly recommend!"

Balcony Garden

Lastly, if you live in an apartment with access to a balcony, you can create your own mini vegetable garden. Balconies typically get plenty of sunlight and air, so you can grow a variety of produce right outside your back door. You can find a variety of balcony garden ideas with a quick Google search. If you're unsure about where to start, check out this article on Domino where photographer Leslie Santarina created a vegetable garden on her small San Francisco balcony.

Do you live in a small space with a garden? Let us know what your tips and tricks are for growing produce in the comments below!

Cover image via Domino