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On a rooftop in Gowanus, Brooklyn, urban farmer Frieda Lim uses a special gardening method called sub-irrigated planting (SIP). Lim harvests greens, tomatoes, herbs, beans, okra, cucumbers, chiles and flowers from 75 plastic containers on top of her apartment nearly all year long, and calls it "Slippery Slope Farm."

"I've got a huge variety of things growing and I'm able to provide food for my family, friends, and even the local four-and-twenty blackbirds from May until December, and I'm hoping to keep elongating that growing season," says Lim.

The main secret of a SIP is a reservoir under the potting mix. Fill that up with H2O, which trickles up through the soil. The result are high-yield planters that practically water themselves.

"Some of the advantages, which are key, especially to people with limited time, would be the water conservation, and not needing to water your system as often, not a daily chore," says Lim. "Weeding is also one of the pluses, where it's pretty much nonexistent. You have the plastic mulch, and it suppresses weeds."

SIPs can be bought, but to learn how to make them out of materials around the home, attend the workshops that Lim helps run. For more information on the workshops, go to www.slipperyslopefarm.us

"You can buy ready-made products like the Earth Box or less expensively anybody can make them out of any water-tight containers," Lim says. "In my case, I'm using an 18-gallon Rubbermaid tote. The key thing is trying to use food-grade plastics."

Yet another advantage of SIPs for New Yorkers is their mobility.

"You can move them around, and eventually we will be building our master bedroom, so that's why it's ideal for us. We're going to be moving them up another floor," says Lim.

For more information, visit EdibleManhattan.com.