My backyard at home is completely cement. There is no ground to grow a garden. Any suggestions or ideas on how I can have my own garden and grow my own plants ?Maybe even something that won't corrode the cement over time ?
Large planter pots. Put them on bricks and hose off occasionally underneath. (It's the chemical fertilzers that corrode the cement over time.)
plant in pots or make a raised bed ,put down plastic to protect the cement ,build a frame fill with soil ,garden.
If this was my situation, which it was when I lived in Chicago, I would put together some planter benches. I used landscaping timbers (3x5s with rounded sides). Build them like Lincoln logs use large spikes to hold them together. The people at Home Depot helped me come up with the idea, I am sure someone there could help you, also there are websites and books. Also I asked the same question about corrosion and researched it, Pressure Treated lumber has been known over time (in the range of 50 years, I am sure you will have replaced them by then if you are still there) to corrode concrete. By the time I moved you would have thought that the concrete pad was just a walk way.
Bummer, I'd hate not being able to plant things in my yard. The way you worded the question make me think that breaking up the cement and putting in soil isn't an option, and I suppose that drilling some drainage into it and dumping large amounts of soil on top of it isn't an option either. That pretty much leaves doing all your growing in smaller portable containers. You can try to find the largest pots you can, depending on what you're growing. Get creative - it's amazing what you can grow things in (though if you use plastic containers, they need to be UV stable.) Everything must have adequate drainage, of course. You could also build planters w/ concrete or other materials you have access to. Also, pots don't have to be set all around on the ground. You can get creative. Build UP. You can make trees with pots hanging off of it, or built in all around it. Another way to go up is in more of a wall fashion. Do some internet searches and check youtube for info on vertical gardening. It's more effort than planting in the ground, but you can come up with some really nice looking things. As for not corroding the cement, if this is really important to you, you need to keep it clean (swept and/or hosed off). Don't let water sit or pool on it for long. Clean up soil/compost spills quickly. Hope some of this helps you add a little of God's greenery to your home.
Large pots and hanging planters will do the trick.
