weak sun, NE facing balcony garden help!

[greekislandgirl]

I'm starting to plan for my garden for the spring. The basics are: a long narrow balcony, facing Northeast, gets medium sun from sun-up til about 11am, then very quickly fades. We live in a Mediterranean climate so should be able to grow pretty much everything, but the sun is an issue because it's an apartment so I can't do anything about it. We just moved here in August and I haven't tried any plants yet so this is my trial run year.

A couple things:

I can't afford to throw money away on this. It has to be profitable in the sense that I would rather spend a little extra to have a better chance of my plants surviving, and I want high yield plants.

I'm only interested in edibles.

Everything has to be able to grow in containers (sizes variable, but it must be containers).

So I'm wondering if anyone has recommendations for what plants I should aim for?

I was hoping to do cilantro and jalapeno peppers because they're not available here for purchase, and cherry tomatoes because they're very expensive here. I'd also like to do lettuce.

But after that I'm pretty much open to anything. I love all produce, greens, etc. I have a lot of seeds but am thinking (after a disastrous spring 2011) that I will buy seedlings this year.

Anyone who has grown in a NE facing low-light situation have some ideas?

[Contrary Housewife]

My back deck faces north, and is very large, so I get NE exposure in the morning and NW exposure on the other side in the evening. I keep plants on both sides but no plants get both morning and evening exposure except in mid summer.

Morning exposure is great for taking the chill off of cold spring and fall mornings. I have my crocus and a pot of tulips sitting there right now. come spring I will start seedlings in that area.

You should be able to grow herbs of all kinds and various greens. Tomatoes and peppers need hot afternoon sun to ripen, so you may not do well with those, but then you are in Greece so you get way more sun than I do.