Indoor/Greenhouse Winter Gardening

[Cherry Kelly]

Per request am opening the indoor gardening/greenhouse for winter time.

As I mentioned, one can grow leaf lettuce indoors in the winter.
Requirements:
1 - leaf lettuce seed (this was procured at a local farm supply outlet)
2 - at least three window type planters (5-6inch tall and as long as you want to work with)
3 - sunny window

Leaf lettuce planting: prepare soil, water soil and allow to sit overnight, scratch the surface with something like a toothpick - I do two rows in a 4" wide type window planter. Leaf lettuce seed is small so can be a bit difficult to spread as you can accidentally clump it a lot. Some suggest adding a bit of sand, but I just work slowly and carefully with shaking seed onto soil. About 1/8" is all you need, cover with bit of soil. Set it in sunny window area and do keep it MOIST - not soaking wet. One week later, start the 2nd and a week after that the third.
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Pepper plants will also grow indoors, especially the hotter varieties, though I have finally succeeded with Bell pepper.
DO NOT EXPECT A LOT OF PEPPERS!
When the fall comes around, and I want to add another pepper variety, I will look at the bottom of the plant for a woody stem growth. I select TWO of same variety and plant them in ONE large pot. This has worked well with habaneros hots to the Bell. I have not tried some peppers as they do not get what I call a woody type stem.
Plant in larger pots with good drainage and put them in or on something so water can drain to the bottom. (I use old plastic bucket lids for excess water catching as many of these larger pots did not come with something to sit them in.) Pepper plants require sunlight and more watering than other type houseplants so water when top soil is dry...and no water is showing in the bottom catch.

Tomatoes of the smaller variety can also be grown indoors. They too require larger pots and for some varieties a good plant holder (wire basket or single but sturdy posts to tie up tomato vines). Some varieties like the little grape tomatoes did not do well, but another cherry tomato did produce indoors.

Carrots and radishes will also grow in small pots indoors. Carrots - want the smaller varieties. Radishes will need good sunlight, but carrots seem to grow in filtered light. Again scatter planting time on radishes as well as carrots. sunshine and water!

Herbs grow as well, but Basil often needs reseeding and starting as it does bolt a lot... rosemary does well and cilantro in a container and filtered light.

There are other veggies that can be grown as well as hanging basket strawberries.

Its great to have a FEW fresh veggies indoors in the winter.

GREENHOUSES can grow a lot more in winter, but require a lot of extras - heat, and grow lights.

[Psychicwolf]

Good info.
I grow herbs indoors year round. I used to grow them in the garden but when I moved out here I found that elk and deer quite like herbs so they moved indoors.
My elderly neighbor grows potatoes and carrots in the winter in plastic garbage cans on her back porch. Several holes cut in the sides and she can reach in and harvest fresh spuds and carrots.

http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/nwgardens ... coe07.html
Growing spuds in a garbage can is fun, and it's something you can do to get your kids interested in gardening. Any clean plastic garbage can will work. Drill at least four 1/2-inch holes in the bottom for good drainage and fill the bottom 6 inches deep with houseplant potting soil. Mix in slow-release fertilizer, or feed every two weeks with high-phosphorus, soluble houseplant fertilizer. Buy starter potatoes at a nursery, and plant them whole, 5 inches apart, just under the soil surface and water them in. The vines will soon begin to grow and as soon as they reach 4 inches tall, cover all but 1 inch of the lowest vine with compost, wood chips or potting soil. Continue to cover the vines in this way until they grow out of the top of the garbage can. Once the vines bloom, you can reach in and pick the biggest spuds you can find. These are new potatoes and they won't store, but they are delicious for that evening's dinner. Wait to do the main harvest until vines die back completely in fall. You never know what you'll get. My champion harvest was 42 softball-size Yukon Golds. Then for some reason, the next year I planted the same variety and got exactly 9,347,012 spuds smaller than pingpong balls.

[tiffany]

Thank you CherryK...wonderful information from both you and PW.

What if you live in a area where the sun does not shine very much from Novemeber thru March but occcasionally. The windows I have get the sun if it is shining most of the day. Is there some lighting I can purchase to help them grow. I am interested in the lettuce, cherry tomatos and maybe small green beans, radishes lol I know getting ahead of myself this is indoor gardening.

PW I luv Yukon Golds...have to check that one out. You know the exact number in the millions.

Can I plant these things I mentioned now?

[tiffany]

CherryK how long can you have lettuce to harvest for the winter? Would I have to have a lot of containers or just plant more seeds where lettuce was harvested? Or after cutting leaves do they grow back and if they do how long will they produce. Or do they need replanting after cutting. I know I sound putting unknowing as it has been years since I was able to garden.

[Cherry Kelly]

Tiffany -- I use the three containers - as lettuce matures and harvested from container ONE, it will be used for more seed for another batch. HOWEVER, wait until all the lettuce is picked, stir the soil a bit then do your re-seeding.

The best lighting I have found (and cheapest) is the lights for aquariums. They have special lights for those that contain live plants. You can get aquarium hoods to hold the lights and suspend them above your plants. I did that many years ago when I had an old aquarium that had cracked glass (and was living in a place with not much winter light) so could not be used for fish. I found it worked very well for flowering plants. Experimentation proved it worked for herbs and veggies as well.

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Psychicwolf -- ya have heard of that one before, also hay/straw piles, but around here it freezes so cannot do those outdoors in the winter.

[tiffany]

Thanks very much CherryK;)

[Cherry Kelly]

This site shows some of the pepper plants that were growing and producing in JAN of 2006

http://www.kayceedot.magnets4yourhealth ... lbum&id=14

Views kinda duplicated in that just shows different part of the pepper plants (there are two plants in the large container) but it should give you the idea that yes they grow indoors in the winter AND produce!

For others interested
http://www.kayceedot.magnets4yourhealth ... ction&id=5

some of the flowers from 2006 - spring/summer.
We need to put in the 07 pictures and hope to update with this winter's production indoors...for plants as they grow.

[tiffany]

CherryK.

Wow! Your pepper crop is great...

You have lots of growing room you are very fortunate. Lovely flowers and gardens.

Will look forward to your indoor pics of your hard work and thank you for the great ideas.

[Cherry Kelly]

tiffany -- thank you, living in the country helps a lot!

In the spring I will write on how people can garden with only a small terrace or apartment gardening... or renew that one.

It truly is amazing what you can do even with limited space...

Gotta sort through pix some time between holidays...