There are more than a few secrets to getting your food to grow indoors no matter what part of the year it is. Well-drained soil, plenty of light (even grow lights), and the right amounts of water are crucial to the success of indoor gardening. The general “rules” of container gardening apply here, too. Make sure the container is deep enough for the plant, use fresh potting mix, and make sure the container has a drainage hole.
Again, this is all simple enough in the summer. Your plants sit by the open windows and enjoy a nice breeze while they bask in the sunlight. But let’s talk about winter. How can you get food to grow indoors without that lovely breeze or the open windows or the 12 hours of sunshine? Light, indoor varieties, and warmth. Sometimes, also humidity. A hydroponic garden can truly thrive in a dry winter with a mister.
Hydroponic gardens are a whole separate beast of indoor gardening, but they are a wonderful thing if you love fresh produce. Depending on your system, soil may not even be needed, and you can grow a compact food garden right in your living room without any mess. For those who take a more disciplined approach, closed system hydroponics could be the right solution for growing an indoor garden. Or, if you simply don’t want to give up fresh produce in the winter, it’s great too!
In the articles below, we share everything you need to know about indoor gardening. And you can learn even more about it in our How to Grow a Vegetable Garden: 10 Things Every Gardener Needs to Know Before Starting a Food Garden freebie. Enjoy!
“I’m bored! There’s nothing to do.” Sound familiar? I’m pretty sure every parent or caregiver has heard this on at least a few occasions. Some of us might be able to send our kids outdoors to wander, but that’s not the case for everyone. Nor is it the case all the time. That’s one reason […]
Figuring out how to regulate humidity indoors can sometimes feel like a hopeless venture. Just when you get it right, someone opens the front door, and the whole indoor atmosphere changes. Or here in New England, one day can be 70 and sunny, and the next is 48 and windy. If I didn’t care about […]
You’re right. Growing root vegetables indoors isn’t exactly on the cover of Garden Glamour magazine. (I just made that up. It’s not a real magazine. But if it was, indoor root veggies probably wouldn’t be on the cover.) Sure, you’ve got your ornamental kale, your hydroponic leaf lettuce, and your indoor herb garden. I’m all for those, especially since I live in New England and can’t grow vegetables outdoors in the winter.
Living in the northeast, I don’t take indoor growing of fruits and vegetables that seriously. I consider it more of a hobby than a sustainable source of produce, and maybe even more of a science experiment. Here are some recent examples: “this winter, can I get a crop of cherry tomatoes before spider mites come […]
I’ll be the first to tell you that hydroponic gardening to grow your own food at home is both ridiculously fun and frustrating. Just when you think you’re on auto-pilot, a batch of roots clogs a pipe and sends half your plants gasping for water and you don’t know until they’re laying there lifeless one […]
If you’ve seen a banana tree in the wild, you might think the idea of growing bananas indoors is ludicrous. Depending on the variety, “average” banana trees can grow anywhere from 20 to 40 feet tall. They grow quickly, too. It’s not unheard of for banana plants to grow in the neighborhood of three feet […]
Allow me to share with you why I decided to write about how to bring an outdoor plant inside without bugs. It all began with a lovely little citrus tree. I love citrus trees, and there’s nothing like a bright pop of yellow lemons or colorful oranges to liven up your home, inside or out. […]
One of the elements a garden needs to grow is a healthy amount of sunlight. That’s easier said than done in some locations. Long winters, no space, or other conditions may require that some of our gardens have to move indoors, making indoor garden lights essential. I’m endlessly fascinated by how plants collect energy from […]
I’ll be the first to say that my idea of indoor crops in the winter probably isn’t enough to make luxurious meals every night. Certainly, some people go all out with elaborate hydroponics systems and grow lights. I admire these people, but I’m not sure my old house could handle the electric requirements without blowing […]
Micro-gardening? Yeah, it’s pretty much what it sounds like, although micro-gardening indoors is somewhat of a variation on the original design. The idea of micro-gardening began as a way to deal with food insecurity and lack of access to healthy, fresh foods. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) describes micro-gardening as […]
