Many homeowners, especially in the city where places are smaller and gardens non-existent, don’t have many opportunities to garden much. Indoor gardens have become popular over recent years and offer a valuable alternative to gardening outdoors.   

Herbs and small vegetables are excellent for growing indoors and with the right setup, you can recreate the outdoors for your crops.  

Vertical Gardens  

Always a good option in minimal space. Herbs grow abundantly in a vertical garden, along with most other house plants and small veggies. Vertical gardens are an excellent way to transform the look of your home. It takes up minimal floor space while boosting our health and well-being. Research has shown that including a mix of plant species in a vertical garden provides many physical and physiological benefits. Positive effects include enhanced cognitive function and creativity. Living walls are a great trend as far as sustainability is concerned.  

Bulb it Up  

Bulbs do great indoors and gives you the opportunity to prep them well for spring. According to Gardeners Supply Company, “the key to success with indoor bulbs is to plan. Many people don’t realize that there are two types of bulbs for indoor growing: those you need to chill and those you don’t. Bulbs that are native to warm climates don’t require a cooling period to trigger blooms. Amaryllis and paperwhite narcissus both belong in this category. Other spring-flowering bulbs require a chilling period before they’ll bloom. This includes tulips, daffodils, hyacinths, crocus, Dutch iris, and scilla”  

Blooms can appear from as early as three weeks to others only blooming after six to eight weeks.   

Indoor Grow Tents  

Some indoor gardeners take growing pretty seriously and invest in indoor growing tents. With the right lighting, equipment and skill, you can easily grow – pretty much anything you want in an indoor growing environment. Grow tents are collapsible tents that allow you to grow your plants indoors. They are readily available online with many suppliers all over South Africa. Indoor growing is a difficult way to grow, as you have to recreate mother nature, earth (soil), air (fans), fire (lighting) and water (hydroponics) all in a limited space.  

Hydro Pro says “Grow tents let you have fresh produce year-round by creating an appropriate environment for your indoor hydroponic garden. You have improved control over the growing environment”.  

Go on, get your indoor gardening on!  get more gardening advice here.