Tomatoes, dwarf French beans in pots, potatoes in buckets, salad crops (lettuce, spring onions, radishes), pepper plants etc etc. I have done this for years now, and I absolutely love it. You can get even more ideas from an article on my website about growing vegetables in containers: grow-vegetables-at-home.com/growing-vegetab.
There are some other articles similar on there too, e.g. Growing an olive tree in a container, growing chili peppers,using planter bags etc.
Leaf lettuce is great for window boxes. Also, tomatoes do well in pots, although the fruit tends not to get as big as when planted directly in the ground. I've had success with peppers in a pot, also.
Fresh herbs are really easy to grow in containers - basil, parsley, cilantro, etc. I have a garden so I haven't tried anything else in containers.
There are many dwarf varieties of fruit that are suitable for containers and small places. The most important element is at least 6 hours of full sun daily. (Chill hours for stone fruits and danger of frost need to be checked since I don't know where you live).
Blueberries, strawberries, Nectazee nectarine, Honeybabe peach, citrus fruits of all kinds.
Prior comments and suggestions are all great. There are also a few new varieties of squash and melons that are compact for containers. Upside down (Topsy Turvy) bags for tomatoes and other veggies are space saving and don't require staking.
Earth boxes are also easy to care for when water/hose access is a problem. Have fun and eat well!
You should look into seed catalogues. Not only do they sell seeds, but often plants as well. You can purchase apple trees and blueberry bushes among other things, that have been potted and trained specifically to be grown on your patio (or balcony).
Tomatoes were the first thing that came to mind when I saw your question. A better question might be what would you like to grow. Many things can be grown in pots.
I read an article about growing potatoes in a garbage can. May I recommend, Miller's Nursery. There are several others I like but off the top of my head can not remember.
You can request a free seed catalog and usually if you request a catalog from one you will be inundated with catalogs from many. Anyway, good luck.
DeborahNeyens I've never had much success with herbs, for some reason I just can't seem to be able to grow them.
I live in East Texas by the way, I'm not sure if that affects any of the advice for the plants.
My personal favorite is chives. They are not a very good indoor plant, but they are excellent outdoors, especially on balconies, and taste absolutely delicious! They aren't too hard to grow either, which is something coming from me, since I have no green thumb whatsoever.
I do know my neighbor grows tomatoes, onions, chives and radishes on his balcony during the summer months, and is always kind about sharing. Delicious!
I grow radishes, spring onions, spinach and leaf salads in small, shallow window boxes. If you've got deep enough pots, carrots or beetroot would be fine...
I too have had a bit of trouble with herbs, although this year I grew sage in small pots which did really well. Basil isn't usually too bad either.
I'd recommend cherry tomatoes if you're going to grow them in pots. Large tomatoes can be just fine, but I find that the smaller varieties are easier to handle in small spaces.
I cant really gove you an answer,but what I can give you is a way to a solution, that is you have to find the anglde that you relate to or peaks your interest. A good paper is one that people get drawn into because it reaches them ln some way.As for me WW11 to me, I think of the holocaust and the effect it had on the survivors, their families and those who stood by and did nothing until it was too late.