Indoor Container Gardening

Have you thought of growing vegetables indoors? That is, other than in greenhouse. It can be done and is a great hobby! The choices are many and require only your interest, energy, along with containers and a good growing medium and your tender loving care.

The containers you will use for growing indoors are the same as outdoor container gardening. The container should be adequate in size and have a good drainage system. Read the instructions on the seed package for the correct amount of seeds and spacing for planting. Use your imagination for a planter. Visit junk shops and garage sales you may be surprised what unique receptacles you might find. Plus, its fun to explore at flea markets looking for ¡§special¡¨ things! Any neat looking repository might work.

• A fish aquarium
• A waste basket
• An old pail or bucket
• Old wood boxes with plastic lining
• Old wash basin or tub

These are just a few ideas and I am sure that you can look around your garage and find even more inventive items to use.

Use purchased potting soil for inside growing, regular soil will compact and be hard, thus not lending itself well to growing healthy plants. You could mix 1/3 each of perlite and commercial potting soil. It is very important to have good drainage!

Growing inside will require feeding more often. Fertilize every two weeks with a good balanced household fertilizer. Water daily, the indoor growing conditions will dry the soil quickly.

In order to grow the plants will need good light. A window that faces South is the very best area to place your pots. Plants that have begun to produce will need at least 12 hours of light each day. If you are unable to position your plants to receive that much bright sunlight use a florescent light to supplement.

Some vegetables suited for indoors are:

• Leaf lettuce, Spinich, Endive, Swiss chard, Radishes, Dwarf carrots, Bunching onions, Beets and Turnips
• Tomatoes (choose the patio size) will not set fruit unless they have nighttime temperatures of at least 60-70-degrees and daytime temperatures of at least 80 degrees. The leafy and root crops like it cooler, with highs of 60-70 degrees and down as low as 40 degrees at night.

If you have a room with lots of light, you will probably enjoy experimenting with this project. Expertice comes by trial and error. Your local county extension office might have more in depth information on the subject. Have fun!