My family and I have started an indoor garden due to the current cold weather and red clay soil. We have all of our plants in portable pots so that if we should lose power we can tote them outside to get sunlight and bring them back in for the night due to the cold weather. I have found that the plants under an aquarium grow light seem to be growing the fastest! I didn't go to the store and buy a bunch of plant pots either. I have even used packing material that came off electronics because it was like herb planters, and then I sterilized some other plastic containers and totes, and even Lego boxes! I am on a budget so I took a look around the house and used what I knew would work. I have yet to spend more than $25 on my garden. I paid $19 for the seeds and found organic soil at Wal-Mart for .99Cents for 40 pound bags. I don't have any heat blowing on my plants or in the room with my plants. The room I am using does not have a heat/air vent (not that I've turned the heat on even though it’s in the low 30s). I do leave the door to the room open. I have found that things like garlic and spearmint take a little longer to sprout, then is the bell peppers, and carrots. The easiest thing I have found to grow is spinach and lettuce mix, then green onions, tomatoes (roma and beef), green beans, basil, parsley, oregano, and sweet basil. Most herbs are fairly simple to grow indoors because they do not require a deep root system. However, when you grow something like a carrot you must ensure that you have a deep enough container and deep enough soil in an effort to give the carrots room to grow down into the soil, same with garlic, and potatoes. I plan to plant cucumbers, peas, and red cabbage this weekend. I am going to purchase my fruit trees and strawberry seeds if I can find them this weekend as well. I have only had these plants for 11 days and all of them say 7-10 or 10-14 days to sprout! All but my peppers, garlic, and spearmint have sprouted. My green beans are huge and my green onions are quite large as well. I have been watering my plants every other day and it only takes a little sprinkle of water to moisten the soil. I don't have drain holes in the bottom of any of the containers.
My green beans are over 8 inches tall! My green onions and my spinach and lettuce mix are large too!
My green beans are over 8 inches tall! My green onions and my spinach and lettuce mix are large too!