Hi Gioenne, in the area where you've got your table - you can use low light plants such as the Peace Lily , even Philadendrons will work (just don't put a little Philadendron into a pot that is much bigger than the pot that it's in - they'll grow into monsters).

You could go with that vertical planter or tier light weight pots in two layers - taller ones at the back, lower at the front - just ensure that you lighten up your mix for weight purposes on your balcony (add some perlight to keep your potting mix light - if your pots end up being deeper than you need for your plants roots - Styrofoam at the bottom of the pots will reduce the weight and the amount of potting mix you need).

Great idea about the styrofoam, geogi02!! Didn't ever think of that!

The tall grouped pots look nice, but I don't think they suit the plants you want to put in them. Creating as much space as possible for spread will give you better results with herbs and succulents so the vertical planter you found would be a good option. Georgi02's ideas for stacking pots are great especially for plants like mint which will take over if planted in the same pot as other herbs.

Thanks so much, Timandra! Definitely some considerations for me there, since I've had trouble keeping herbs alive in the past. The hardiness of succulents works in my favour though ;) Will share pictures once I get onto this!

Light weight fibreglass pots in a variety of shapes and sizes work well on balconies. Use taller pots in the back to create height, there are low maintenance succulent varieties that are tall i.e. Mother-in-laws tongue, yucca, jade. Then under plant with lower growing varieties that spill over the edge of the pot. Take a look through our blog for a few more design ideas. http://www.urbanbalcony.com.au/section/blog/