i m currently trying to grow various crops of squash and tomatoes on a very low light balcony setting, who gets shaded in part by large trees and the neighboring buildings. the good news is that the direct light i do get is when the sun is at its strongest, and i can trim some of the tree foliage to allow even more in.

i recently read about reflective mulching as a way to increase photosynthesis and yield of crops that would normally require much more sunlight, and im thinking of trying it but am not sure how to go about it. i see some people simply using aluminum foil in their gardens - i grow in containers so my idea was to either use round aluminum that would fit the size of my containers or make something out of cardboard and tape aluminum foil on it. id like to have something easily removable so i can take it off when i water or when i feel like the earth needs to breathe or cool down...

im about to repot most of my plants to their final pots so i wanted to do this all at once .. any thoughts or experiences to share on this?