Indoor Gardening Techniques and Guide
Today, we learn the topic of indoor gardening techniques and ideas. If you live in a small apartment or don’t have a garden to speak of but you still have a love for planting and cultivation, you don’t have to give up your dream. Maybe you’re not going to be producing a crop that will keep you and your family fed for the whole year, but it will bring you satisfaction and joy. One must know indoor gardening techniques for becoming an expert in home gardening.
Studies have shown that growing the smallest of patio or windowsill gardens will reduce your stress and improve your mood. There is nothing to lose – get your gloves on and start planting!
Here is a short guide to help you begin:
Balcony Gardens
You’re truly lucky if you have a balcony. Even if it doesn’t get much sun, it’s a perfect place to start. A great type of plant to consider for a balcony is something that climbs and will cover your space and turn it into a green oasis. Here are some great climbers:
- Beans – These are perfect if you need privacy and would love a wall of green separating you from the outside world. Beans and peas make a lovely cover and grow quickly. For this, the only special tools you will need are strings to put up for them to climb on. You can use small nails to attach them to the ceiling above. You can harvest these through the summer and fall.
- Grapes – these will keep for multiple years, unlike beans. There are many types to choose from and for the balcony garden, we recommend sweet dessert grapes – something to put on the table and enjoy when guests come over. An important requirement is a large, solid planter. Wood or metal are the best choices here. You will also need to train it properly, using a solid lattice. You may need to find out if your landlord will allow this if you’re renting.
- Squash, pumpkins, and cucumbers – these also need a solid planter, but once it’s in, your squashes will be easily guided along a strong lattice. In the season, they will hang down and ripen in the autumn sun. They will also make a great and impressive cover, with their large leaves and pretty flowers.
- Tomatoes – yes, tomatoes! You don’t think of them as climbing plants but climb they do and to great heights. There are multiple different kinds of tomatoes, like Triple Crop that acts more like a pole bean than a tomato! It’s not only useful but amazing to see. Be sure to get the right kind when you look for seeds.
Balcony Flower Garden.
Read: How to Make Liquid Fertilizers for Garden Plants.
Seedlings and Getting the Plants You Want
Speaking of seeds, it’s a much better idea to grow plants from seeds, especially if you are looking for a very specific type of plant (like the designer climbing tomato). It’s not very likely that they’ll have exactly what you want or need in your local gardening store.
Looking for seeds online might be your best bet. If you don’t want to turn half of your apartment into a sprouting colony, with little delicate seedlings on every windowsill and tabletops, you should get a greenhouse. Yes, if you’re a patio or balcony warrior, there are amazing small greenhouses available out there, and they’re made just for you. They will lean against your balcony wall and are meant not to take much space. But they still do the same job that a full garden greenhouse would.
They will make it possible to start your own seedlings and shield them from cold weather and wind until they are big enough to support themselves, and the weather is nice enough to let them wander outside by themselves. Think of it as a plant daycare.
Indoor Kitchen Gardens
If you want to have an indoor herb garden, you are not alone. Even those cooks who have space outside prefer having some plants inside, especially aromatic herbs. They add beauty to the kitchen and are very useful when you want to toss something fresh in a stew or salad.
Shelf Life – because plants love sunlight, a windowsill is the natural place to keep all your greens. Plants like basil, cilantro, parsley, rosemary, lovage, spinach, and a never-ending parade of sprouts should be put in beautiful ceramic pots and displayed on the windowsill with pride.
Special tools – if you have space and the means to get equipped, don’t hesitate to get a plant cultivator. Those dishwasher looking appliances will automate your growing while looking sleek and modern. They have a glass door through which you can observe your plants, ecological lighting and full hydroponics set up.
Sprouter – a sprouting tray is probably one of the most economical and dirt-free indoor growing methods you can have. Not to mention fast! If you’re craving those nutritious microgreens, they will take days to sprout and to end up on your plate. If you can’t get a sprouter, then use an empty jar instead. Just soak the sprouts and continue to rinse them daily, using a cloth to drain your jar. Place on the windowsill, and you’ll be eating green in a little over a week!
Read: Organic Composting Guide.
Go Vertical – there are many indoor vertical garden designs. Those space-saving gardens can be mounted on a wall and not take up much space. This can be as simple as mounting rows of shelves in close proximity and choosing nice pots to line them with. It can mean a row of hanging pots or a stand-alone shelf. Go high!
Pets and Plants – If you are short on space and think you can’t have a pet OR a garden then think again. There are tiny hydroponic systems available where your small aquarium can feed a modest hydroponic garden which will be conveniently located on the “second floor” of your aquarium. You can grow aromatic herbs and keep them fed and happy while providing your fish with unique living experience, and your guests with a great conversation piece.
Indoor Gardening is Worth It
Even if you don’t have enough “crops” to be self-sufficient – it’s not what home gardening is all about. It’s about satisfaction, beauty, and the joy that watching something grow brings.
It’s also a great tool to teach children who grow up in an urban environment where their food comes from, and how to appreciate it more. Once they know how much work it takes to grow something, they’ll look at it differently and more respectfully.
That’s all folks about Indoor Gardening Techniques and Ideas. Happy gardening!.
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