As the weather warms up, you might be inspired to add some greenery to your home or apartment. For those living in multi-family residences — such as our own Optima residents — that means finding the right plants to accommodate your space. Whether you want to cultivate an indoor forest or try planting outdoors, here are the best plants for small urban gardens.

Indoor Options

For indoor gardening, you should check out your light exposure before you buy any plants. Working with south-facing windows is drastically different than north-facing windows, and knowing how much light your home gets is crucial to cultivating happy plants. At Optima, our units always feature floor-to-ceiling windows – perfect for all exposures and for creating the ideal indoor growing environment.

Snake plants, bamboo plants, types of pothos and spider plants can all thrive in indirect light. For sunnier spots, try options like aloe vera, jade plants, succulents and types of cacti. Many of these plants are also low-maintenance when it comes to watering. 

Outdoor Options

Stoops, balconies, patios, decks and rooftops all have the potential to be a home for a small garden, if you can master container gardening. Year-round foliage will depend on your environment, but for seasonal summer greenery, many herbs and vegetables double as decor and a source of fresh food. Peppers, salad greens, tomatoes and green onions are easy to grow in containers or pots, as are most herbs.  

Plants are a huge part of our design process at Optima, through our vertical landscaping systems, green space and sustainability initiatives. Bringing the outdoors in can help make any space more vibrant, more joyful and more green; we hope you feel inspired to add some plants to your own urban garden this spring!