Categories: Gastronomy

Urban cultivations in Barcelona: What to grow?

There are more and more people who opt for a healthy diet every day, they want to know what is the origin of the products they consume, especially vegetables, fruits and meat products. In that sense, and facing the impossibility of having a cultivation in a rural area, there’s this new trend of having urban cultivations on the balcony or terrace of an apartment inside a building.

These crops grow between buildings in Barcelona, in an attempt to bring the nature closer to us. For many, it is a big step and a therapeutic way of eating, not so much a way to save money, but it can help fight economic crisis as well. In ShBarcelona we have noticed this growing trend of urban farming installing tables sold at very affordable prices and we wanted to encourage you to acquire your own. Discover the fabulous world of agriculture and you eat what you cultivate. If you also have young children, you can teach them the techniques of these crops and provide them with a gastronomic education.

Related article: Buying organic food in Barcelona

Before you start your “career” as a small-scale farmer you must get some tips on what table suits your balcony or terrace. You should also know that insects and birds will be attracted to your fruits and vegetables, which will have to remain protected from their “attacks” with grids, meshes, and special products (such as a homemade insecticide infusion of garlic). It is also important to use a good plant substrate and an organic fertilizer for the products we plant grow, flourish and have an intense flavor and provide us with vitamins. To all the advantages of having your own fruits and vegetables cultivation, you have to add the positive effect of urban gardens in the environment because they give off oxygen and absorb carbon dioxide.

Although you may think that winter is not a good time for growing in your urban cultivation, there are some perfect products for this season, as the garlic (January to March), celery (February-March), eggplant (more sensitive to cold, so they should be protected in February and March), chicory (February to April), cucumbers (February to April), parsley (can be planted all year actually), peppers (among February and March), tomatoes (February to March), carrots (biannual cultivation), onions, cabbages, cauliflower, peas and beans (the latter very resistant to cold in the months of winter). It’s best to buy plants of all these fruits and vegetables, seeds are slow to grow and you have to invest more money on it.