An indoor garden can be a great way to add some greenery to your home, but it doesn't have to be overwhelming if you only have about 600 square feet of space to use. Here, we’ll share the basic things you need for a small indoor garden and what tools are best for your new indoor gardening hobby.
What Are the Benefits of An Indoor Garden?
Evidence-based research shows that gardening increases overall satisfaction, happiness, well-being, reduces stress, and even improves cognitive function. Anger, weariness, despair, and anxiety can all be decreased by keeping up some foliage inside of your home. It is important to note that having more plants means the air in the house is more oxygenated and purified. Our lungs could take some assistance after this pandemic, ya think?
There are many benefits to indoor gardening. It is a great way to bring nature into your home, make your own food, and save money. You can choose the plants that you like and have space for. You can also grow plants that are harder to find in stores, such as lettuce or other greens.
If you live in an apartment or small home (or even in a food desert), then growing plants indoors might be your best or only option for eating healthy food and having control over what goes into your body.
How to Start Your Indoor Garden
Step 1: Plan out a space for your garden.
If you want to start an indoor garden, there are a few things that you need to know. First, how much space do you currently have? If it's just a small area, it might be easier to go with a natural yet functional design. For example, if your room is only 5 feet by 6 feet, consider using a hanging basket or pot. You can also use succulents and cacti as they will require little water and will look great in the corner of your room. If you have more space, then choose something that looks more like an outdoor garden with lots of plants and flowers.
A window sill is ideal for growing herbs and other plants that don't require much space. You can also try using an empty flowerpot like the one in the image above, or even a jar or vase.
Try to choose a spot where there isn't much light, but it is still not too dark. The ideal location is one that receives indirect sunlight during the day and some natural light at night.
Step 2: Choose a container for your plants.
Indoor plants can also be grown in containers made from household products such as plastic pots, old soda bottles, yogurt cups, old haircare jars, etc. These are small enough so that they won't hold much water but large enough so that they don't dry out easily when watered properly. You can choose plastic, glass, ceramic, and metal containers for growing an indoor garden based on what fits with the rest of your interior design. You can place them in a window where sunlight will reach them for part of the day and then move them to an area that receives more light. Choosing the right container for your plants can make all the difference in how well they grow. But it also depends on how much room you have for a garden and what kind of soil you want to use.
If you’re just starting out, choose the smallest container that will accommodate all the plants you need to keep alive, such as herbs and flowers. Choose a container that is large enough to accommodate the roots of the plant and deep enough so that it will not tip over. A 2-gallon container is a good size for most plants.
You should also use only fresh soil when you plant your seeds—don't use compost or other materials that have been sitting around for months or years!
If you have a small space, you can use containers that are about half-full or one-third full of potting soil, which will allow air movement to keep the soil moist and prevent over-watering.
Step 3: Decide what to plant.
There are so many different types of plants that there's sure to be one that fits your needs perfectly! You can also choose from herbs such as basil or chives or even fruits like tomatoes or cucumbers, depending on what season you live in and what type of food you want to eat during the rest of the year!
When selecting plants for an indoor garden, light is the most crucial consideration. Choose plants that will flourish in your home's conditions. A window or skylight can provide natural light, or neighboring lamps or grow lights can provide artificial light. Start by assessing the quantity and type of light that is present in your house.
If you have a garden, you might want to consider growing plants that will provide food for you and your family. Plants like tomatoes and potatoes are easy to grow inside and produce large quantities of delicious food.
If you're trying to keep your kitchen free of dirt and germs, growing your own herbs is a great way to do it without spending money on expensive supplies. Herbs like basil, mint, and tarragon will help flavor your meals without adding calories or sodium.
Here are some examples of indoor plants you can grow:
1) Tomatoes: Indoor tomatoes are perfect for growing in small spaces. The plants are quite similar to their outdoor counterparts, but they have much smaller fruits and flowers. Tomato seeds take about 70 days to germinate, and plants can be transplanted into the garden Germination occurs about 4 weeks after germination has occurred. Tomato plants should be kept well watered during the growing season and pruned regularly to maintain a healthy appearance.
2) Peppers: These plants can grow as tall as 6 feet! They look very beautiful and they produce delicious fruits that you can eat fresh or cook into dishes with them. They require a lot of sunlight and warm temperatures to keep them healthy, so make sure that you place them somewhere sunny but not too hot (for example, near an air conditioner).
3) Basil: Basil is another plant that can grow indoors in small spaces provided that it receives enough sunlight and warmth during the daytime hours.
4) Eggplants: Eggplants should be grown indoors on window sill boxes or similar containers if possible because they tend to grow very tall when allowed outdoors in warmer temperatures
5) Lettuce: This is one of the easiest vegetables to grow in an indoor garden. Lettuce seeds germinate quickly and can be transplanted into any type of container or soil, including cinder blocks or recycled plastic bottles. Lettuce seeds also require very little water during germination and transplanting, so they’re well suited for use in small spaces that don’t have access to much water outside of watering the plant itself.
Step 4: Set up your indoor garden
Start with the basics: light, water, and soil.
The first step in setting up a small indoor garden is to choose the type of soil that you want to use. If you want to grow your own fruits and vegetables, then it is best to get a potting mix that contains nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus. You can also buy ready-made potting soil from garden centers or online retailers.
If you are not interested in growing your own fruits and vegetables, then you can use any kind of soil that you have at home. However, be careful about what type of soil you choose, because some types of soil may not be suitable for growing plants indoors.
After you have chosen your type of soil, it is time to fill up your pots with it. Make sure that there is enough space between each plant so that they do not compete with each other for nutrients and space. This will help them grow faster and healthier than if they were crowded together too closely together. Once all your pots are filled up with the right amount of soil, it is time to put water into them until they are just barely wetted down but not soaked through yet.
The next thing you'll need is good lighting; most plants prefer bright light but won't get enough of it unless you have the right kinds of light sources available. The easiest option is a desk lamp with an adjustable neck so you can position it just right every time. If you don't have an extra lamp around the house, fluorescent bulbs work well too; just make sure they're not too blue-heavy (they should be somewhere between daylight and cool white).
You don't want to over-water your plants either, so set up a watering system that's easy to use—preferably one that you can leave on all day long, so there's no need for constant attention.
How often should you water your indoor garden?
Learning how and how often to water is essential when starting an indoor garden. Although not all plants require the same amount of moisture, it doesn't take long to have an understanding of how much or how little water a plant requires.
My first piece of advice is to research the water and light needs of a particular type of plant before you purchase it. Cacti and other desert plants require less water, whereas tropical plants, which are native to hot, humid climes, require more irrigation. The time of year is another consideration while watering. Plants consume less water in the fall and winter because they grow more slowly.
Although most plants require watering at least once a day, each plant responds differently to different quantities of water. If the water is not absorbed by the roots, it evaporates relatively rapidly since indoor air might occasionally be dry or stale. You should be able to tell if you watch your soil and your plants' leaves.
Once or twice a week, depending on the season, I do an indoor garden tour where I wander around with my watering can to water where necessary. I perform the finger test by inserting my finger into the top inch of soil to measure soil moisture. I water it if it's dry. I don't if it's still damp. Saturate the soil before watering to achieve a uniform distribution of water. You can also water from the bottom by adding water to the saucer underneath the pot until no more is absorbed. Once the soil has become soaked, pour any extra water into the saucer.
3 Ideas For A Small Indoor Garden
Windowsill gardens
After selecting the right plants for the area's lighting, it's time to design your window. You can keep it straightforward by grouping pots together along the window sill, or you can add more shelves or brackets to the window to support many levels of plants. You might want to string wire to support and guide the growth of vining houseplants.
Plant stands and shelves
On a fashionable shelf or stand, display your collection of indoor plants. A wide variety of sizes and varieties are offered online and at garden or home supply stores. You may buy single or multi-tier plant stands, corner stands, or narrow stands to fit in small gardens, but a multi-layer bookshelf or ladder shelf offers plenty of space.
Hanging garden
You can buy or make your own hanging pots, planters, glass or plastic shelves, or macrame holders. In order to prevent a flood from occurring over my windowsill or counter when I water, I prefer to purchase hanging planters without drainage holes. Instead, I place a smaller, drainage-equipped pot inside the planter, and when it's time to water, I take the plant out and give it a good soak in my kitchen sink. It returns to the hanging planter once it has stopped pouring.
Starting an indoor garden is just a little bit of work! You don't have to be a gardener to grow great-tasting, high-quality veggies this way. All you need is a little patience and dedication. Start small. As we said above, it's okay to start with a smaller garden, maybe just one or two of your favorite plants. This should give you ample time to experiment with what you like and don't like in regard to this fun new hobby of yours. Get your green life on?