A comprehensive, essential guide to growing 30 of the best edible plants on your balcony, rooftop, patio or yard—simply, successfully and cheaply—so you can eat a diverse range of vegetables, herbs and leaves throughout the year.

Author Mark Ridsdill Smith trialed over 100 different plants to choose the top 30 that will give you the most ‘bang for your buck', based these four criteria:

• Do they have great flavor and are they versatile in the kitchen? 
• Are they hard to buy or expensive in the shops? 
• Are they highly nutritious? 
• Do they grow easily and / or productively in containers? 

For beginners, Mark gives the steps to grow successfully in containers, together with essential growing skills, like sowing seeds. For more experienced growers, Mark includes tips on growing more in a small space, cost-saving ideas as well as signposting other plants that can be grown using similar techniques. There are also specific growing plans for different scenarios, each one tailored to help overcome a common obstacle, including shortage of time, a lack of space, and growing spaces that don’t get much sun. Other plans in this section will include one for first-time gardeners, for foodies and one for those who rent or are often away from home. Mark will also offer simple ways to make use of your produce in the kitchen.  

This is an essential guide for any gardener, whether growing in pots in small gardens or even large spaces, who wants to look after their gut health, bring diversity and flavour into their diet and reap all the holistic benefits that growing your own can bring.

Grow 30 flavour-packed plants in pots – and transform the way you eat.

Drawing on more than fifteen years of small-space growing, award-winning garden writer and Vertical Veg founder Mark Ridsdill Smith has selected 30 vegetables, herbs and leaves that offer exceptional rewards in containers. Chosen for their flavour, nutritional value, productivity and ease of growing, these plants can bring fresher, more varied food to your plate – and more joy to everyday meals.

Whether you are planting your first pot or wanting to create a highly productive edible garden in a small space, Mark’s Eight Steps to Success, detailed plant profiles and practical techniques show you exactly what to do. Ready-made garden plans help you adapt the advice to real-life challenges, including limited space, little time and less-than-ideal sunlight. Illustrated with 150 photographs, this practical guide will help you grow successfully and affordably on a balcony, rooftop, patio or yard – and enjoy fresh, homegrown food throughout the year.

PRAISE FOR The Vertical Veg Guide to Container Gardening: “Mark’s enthusiasm is infectious and, together with his attention to often-overlooked details, will give you confidence and knowledge to grow an impressive amount of food in seriously small spaces, where you probably thought you could not!” Charles Dowding, author of No Dig