Indoor gardens have become very popular in recent years, but they can be tough to pull off. However, with good preparation and the right knowledge, your fingers will be green in no time at all. Here are six essential things to make your dream of an indoor garden a reality.
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An Idea
All great things start from a simple idea, and it’s no different for growing plants indoors. Think about what you want to achieve. Will your garden be purely ornamental, or do you intend on growing vegetables to eat at the dinner table? Maybe you want a mix of both? You also need to consider what sort of garden you want. You can choose between a container garden or a hydroponic system. Container gardens are far easier to set up – they are just containers and planters filled with soil. Hydroponics use fertilized water and are more complicated, but are perfect for those wanting to grow a lot of plants in a tiny space.
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A Plan
You don’t need to be a design whizz to come up with the perfect indoor garden, but some planning will help you. First of all, you’ll need to find a space that is warm and has natural sunlight. East or west facing windows are usually best, as they have longer exposure to the sun throughout the day. Once you have decided on where your garden will go, you can start sketching out a rough plan. Need some inspiration? Try these ideas.
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Lighting
If you are short on natural lighting or want to increase the speed of growth of your plants, think about getting grow lights. They are incredibly useful and can lead to better yields if you are growing fruit, vegetables or herbs. There are a huge range of lights to choose from. HID – or High Intensity Discharge Lights – are simple to set up and very cost effective. In recent years there has been a lot of interesting developments in LED indoor lighting, such as these HydroGlow LEDs.
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Fruit, Veg & Herbs
If you’re going to have an indoor garden, then why not grow some healthy foods? Fruit and vegetables such as strawberries, tomatoes, radishes, beans, and mushrooms can all be grown successfully indoors. Herbs are a perfect fit: not only will basil, rosemary, and thyme look great, but it will leave a lovely aroma around the room as well.
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Plants & Flowers
Certain plants thrive indoors, so consider looking into cacti, peace lilies, African violets, begonias, and marigolds. Lovely flowers will brighten up your indoor garden perfectly. Stick them in brightly colored pots for added effect.
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Environment Control
Want to know why indoor gardens are so successful? It’s because people can control the environment to the tiniest degree. There are three things you need to watch out for: heat, water, and soil. These all combine to give your plants the best chance to grow. Soil thrives at an optimum temperature of somewhere between 75–85 °F (24–29 °C) and should regularly be watered. It might seem a little hot to keep a room, but you could try soil heating plates, or even try making DIY heating mats.
