I live in a big city (Los Angeles to be exact) and I rent, so yard space is hard to come by, more like I don't have any. Growing up, I always had a garden to grow things in and that's something I miss living in the city. But, the next best thing is to have my own indoor container garden. I am growing mesclun for my salad greens, basil for cooking, and strawberries just to see how they do. If you are thinking of starting an indoor container garden for herbs, vegetables, or flowers, I give you 3 tips to get you on your way to success.
Tip #1: Make Sure Your Grow Bulbs Are Rated As Close To 6500K As Possible. Light is essential for the welfare of your indoor plants. If you have a sunny windowsill that can give you 4 to 5 hours of direct sun every day, then you are good to go. If it is direct sun, you'll want to make sure that you have a sheer curtain to prevent sunburn on your plants. But if you don't have that luxury, like me, you'll need to substitute natural sunlight with artificial light. Not just any light bulb will work. You'll want to make sure that the bulb you get is as close to sunlight as possible. The best bulbs for growing plants are the bulbs with a Kelvin temperature as close to 6500K as possible. Anything within the 5500K-6500K seems to do okay for the plants. I'm currently using 2 - 26W compact fluorescent bulbs (the spiral looking bulbs) rated at 6500K for my garden and things are growing beautifully! The ideal height of the bulbs is between 4 to 6 inches from the top of the plants. The bulbs will have to be adjusted as the plant grows.
Tip #2: Feed Me! You will need to fertilize your plants at every watering for your indoor garden to thrive. Outside, natural fertilizers are deposited everyday in the form of worm droppings, snail droppings, other droppings. Indoors, we will have to provide that nutrition the plants need. Look for fertilizers that release over time or a liquid fertilizer that you can use whenever you water.
Tip #3: Artificial Plant Insemination. Because there is no wind or flying bugs indoors, you will need to act as the doctor in helping your plants reproduce and bear fruit. When you see that the flowers are in full bloom, you'll need to take a cotton swab or small brush and lightly brush each flower and transfer the pollen from one flower to another.
I hope these three tips will get you on your way to harvesting the fruits of your indoor garden.
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