Grow anything remotely edible when I have no garden?

[Spanderholic]

I am going to be living in a six bedroom flat with five other girls. I don't know if I will be there for a year or for the next few years, it depends on my monetary situation (poor student, expensive flat etc). The only issue I have with it is that there is NO GARDEN!!! There is a tiny little area out the back (or front depending how you look at it) which is the size of a postage stamp and is filled in with some kind of green plant/tree thing. I'm not actually moved in yet lol or else I could tell you what it is. Needless to say I don't see myself being able to plant even the most basic of herbs, and I'm hoping there will be enough space with the plants for a couple of demijohns as my flatmates don't exactly know about my homebrewing tendancies and they might not be pleased about something fermenting beside their dirty washing. So my question is, what edible food like things, preferably things which grow without a lot of encouragement, could I have in some pots around the house? The temperature is likely to be rather cold, especially since flats in dunedin tend to be warmer outside, and that is not saying much herbs and such are fine. I haven't grown anything before (ignoring the flax bush I got when I was 8 which is now taller than me!) due to some ocd like tendancies towards dirt which I am trying to rid myself of. Basically I'm trying to save money, as I am getting less this year and am not looking forward to paying the exorbitant prices at the market/supermarket. Oops this is a rambly post! Anyway, sorry for the probably unnecessary info, but I would love your input :)
And on an unrelated note, I CAN'T WAIT TO GET OUT OF CHRISTCHURCH!!! I love seeing my friends and family but I HATE the aftershocks :/

[red]

if you have sunny windowsils there are a few things you can grow - herbs , maybe tomatoes.

you can also look at sprouting beans and seeds in a jar.

and look into allotments in your area. or garden share schemes

[Millymollymandy]

Mustard and cress, basic I know but they do pep up a salad or a sarnie and grow really quickly. You can also grow rocket in exactly the same way for a rockety taste. Some of the other bigger sprouting seeds are best grown in a jar like red suggests.

[Nomada]

My life saver was the book self sufficiency in a flat, I think it's available on amazon. I used to grow salad leaves, spring onions, mini peppers and tomatoes in the kitchen in front of the window so there are things you can do. I'd treat your tomatoes like houseplants and have a few of them by windows in other rooms too. If it's cooler then maybe salad stuff and some herbs would be the way to go, a bag of pre prepared salad leaves can be quite overpriced.

[Green Aura]

I would go with all the above suggestions and sprouting is particularly good if you have trouble handling soil.

There are tons of different seeds you can sprout as well so investing in a tiered sprouter means you can have different things on the go at the same time.

[southeast-isher]

Get an allotment? Grow mushrooms in the cupboard? Windowsills?

[fran]

How about growing chillies? They can give a really good crop and you can use them for cooking, making chilli jelly etc.

[stevetc]

I'd endorse that, I've grown chillies in a pot on a sunny window-sill. . .

[Spanderholic]

You guys are awesome :) Thanks for the ideas.
I never even thought about mushrooms! There is totally an area I could do that in. Chillies, tomatoes and herbs all sound super good and if Dunedin decides to magically provide me with some sun then I will grow them all, or try to at least :)

[phil55494]

Chillies, herbs, basic leafy salad stuff all will do ok on a windowsill.
If the place is anything like some of the stuff I saw as a student then fungi shouldn't need much encouragnent.

[cocobelle]

I was going to suggest chilli's. They're easy to grow and will keep you warmed up (they always make me sweat anyway)

[happyhippy]

Some great idea's there already but you say you have a very small amount of space outside?Enough for some grow bags against a wall perhaps????They would'nt take up much space either?What about some spud bags?You can buy some narrow type plastic troughs which could grow alot of things and their quite cheap too!What about a window box or two?Yes I can imagine the other girls getting their head around your home brew!

[scrap]

A few demijohns do not need to be smelly at all.
Just connect some rubber hoses to the tops of the airlocks and divert the yeasty gasses out of a window.
Do tie some panty nylon around the ends to keep bugs from crawling in...

[cocobelle]

A friend of mine grew aubergines and courgettes in her living room. The whole flat was like a vegetable patch! there is no stopping you if homegrown veg is what you want. It's rubbish not having a garden though. Student property is too expensive.

[honorablekate]

I know the feeling, I have tried unsuccessfully (can one help me on this) to grow spring onions, and radishes, but mustard and cress is easy, and I have been successful with dill. Like the mushroom idea, but unfortunately I am allergic to them! Good Luck!