[VvR-Ox]

I recommend an iterative approach: Plan -> Do -> Evaluate -> Change plan accordingly -> Do...

With limited space you will not have a high yield so planting potatoes etc. will not be that "profitable".

If you like to use herbs for cooking it can be a delight to grow your own.

Maybe you don't cook at all and think about plants which are expensive to buy so you can sell them as a side business.

So to maximize the return on invest you probably want to choose plants that:

1) don't need much space

2) survive the conditions at the location (try several plants and strains and only keep the survivors)

3) have a high-yield and are not consumed that often or in huge amounts (e.g. very hot peppers)

The soil you need and the ability to survive the conditions depends on the plants and their strains. I had some bad experience with "normal" basil and it would die very quickly but then I found some African Basil which has very fleshy leaves and strong trunks it would survive for years without changing the soil.

Some plants can survive more easily when combined with others. Philodendron[0] does not need or want full exposure to sun so putting some peppers in front of it increased it's life-time considerably.

You may want to do some research on the frequency of watering depending on the kind of plants you grow but also look for the condition of the plants while applying a certain amount of water, sun, fertilizer etc.

They won't die instantly if you water them too much or less but you will recognize that their growth rate is inhibited or the leaves and fruits don't get the "right" color or size. You will have to look for these indicators and experiment a little bit until you know the conditions of your place and the needs of your plants and therefor have more success with your growing efforts.

You can take the soil from pretty much everywhere but of course you should not take it from near some factory that may have contaminated it. Just think about the kind of plant and what it's natural soil would be like. Aloe prefer soil with some amount of sand while Philodendron maybe don't like that much of sand.

The soil from a river bed is probably a good choice for Mint, Philodendron etc. but not for Aloe (I assume it may not be dry enough for their taste).

I wish you all the best and hope you can use some of my advice. Happy planting :)

[0]: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philodendron

[animalnewbie]

Thank you for taking the time to write a detailed response! Some of what you've written has indeed been helpful in corroborating a few of my learnings, and some new- eg. Soil type requirement is plant dependant and not universal.

While I was hoping for a very general and very quick guide for people to just dip their toes and figure out the rest as one goes, my specific intention is to grow carrots, beets, tomatoes and maybe cabbage.