How to transform an underused balcony into a lush, functional living space

For Tilly Bissett and Nick Billings, like many apartment dwellers, their balcony felt like an afterthought: a place for a few pots, a chair or two and not much else.

But with some clever planning they transformed the narrow 11-square-metre space in Richmond, Melbourne, into a thriving outdoor room packed with greenery, edible plants and distinct zones for everyday living.

A beautiful but underused space

The couple's north-facing balcony had plenty of potential, but they weren't sure how to make the most of it.

A keen cook and entertainer, Tilly wanted a space where she could grow some produce to use in the kitchen.

Despite trying a few different plants, she had found the balcony a challenging space to garden.

What followed was a rethink of how the space functioned and what could be grown there.

Think bigger with plants

One of the most significant changes was replacing a collection of small hanging herb pots with a few larger feature plants.

These created immediate focal points that helped define the balcony and gave a sense of greenery.

A bottle tree (Brachychiton rupestris) in a sunny position became the main feature tree. Not usually grown in pots, bottle trees grow slowly, meaning they are a low-maintenance option for time-poor gardeners.

Another large pot with a lemon myrtle (Backhousia citriodora) provided an attractive edible tree in a more sheltered spot.

To complete the look, a third large pot was planted with a bay laurel (Laurus nobilis) in the hot, sunny spot next to the barbecue.

Weight is an important consideration when gardening on a balcony. Tilly chose lightweight pots and mixed perlite through a premium potting mix to reduce the overall load on the structure, while still giving plants the room they need to thrive.

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Growing food in a small space

A dedicated food-growing area was included at one end of the balcony.

Rather than installing permanent structures, modular wicking beds were built from second-hand containers sourced through Facebook Marketplace. 

The stacked containers raise the growing beds off the ground and allow veggies to receive sunlight for much of the day, while putting them at a height that makes harvesting easy.

The wicking design also means the beds only need watering once a week in winter and a couple of times a week in summer.

Filled with herbs, leafy greens and other edible crops, the new kitchen garden gives Tilly a ready supply of ingredients just steps from the kitchen.

Layering greenery from floor to ceiling

Another key to the transformation was making use of vertical space.

Layering greenery at different heights created a much richer and more immersive feeling than relying on pots at ground level alone.

The balcony now features plants across multiple levels, including wall planters filled with epiphytes, a striking elkhorn fern (Platycerium bifurcatum) mounted on a backing board attached to the wall and climbing edibles growing up a wire trellis.

Small, medium and large pots throughout the space added further layers of foliage. Tilly and Nick repotted their monsteras and added philodendrons, rubber tree (Ficus elastica) and bird's nest fern (Asplenium cv.) to get a mix of colours and textures.

The result is a balcony that feels lush but not overcrowded.

"I wouldn't have thought that so many plants could fit on the balcony, to be honest," Tilly says, "[but] it feels like there's still a lot of space here."

Using zoning in small spaces

One useful lesson from the project is that zoning isn't just for large backyards. Despite the balcony's small size, it now contains three distinct areas: a barbecue and dining zone, a productive food garden and a cosy reading nook.

The different spaces aren't heavily separated, but each serves a clear purpose. This gives the balcony the feeling of an outdoor room rather than a collection of unrelated pots and furniture.

A practical storage solution helped support the new layout. The face of a second-hand barbecue trolley was clad with upcycled floorboards, creating a neat place to store potting mix and gardening supplies — like a tiny garden shed — which blends seamlessly into the design.

By combining some large feature plants, edible garden beds, vertical planting and clearly defined zones, Tilly and Nick's balcony is now somewhere they genuinely want to spend time.

What was once an underused outdoor area is now a place to cook, garden, read, relax and entertain.

Catch up on the Gardening Australia episode "Balconies, courtyards and small gardens" on iview.