What will my garden grow?

Flowers and leaves artfully arranged on ladders, wallboards, or stands make an appealing addition to any living space. In the winter, having plants in the house adds to the humidity and improves general well-being.

But I’m more the form-and-functionality type. If I can grow pothos and bamboo palm indoors, why not Swiss chard and radishes too?

Especially if you’re doing the low carb or keto thing, you’ll need a lot of leafy greens. A LOT. The idea of stopping by a market for fresh produce every day sounds nice, but for most, I’m guessing it would be a real pain.

Stockpiling produce will make your fridge look as if you’re growing vegetables; so why not really do it?

Growing an indoor vegetable garden will keep plants on the vine until you’re ready to use them. Knowing how much to plant will be an important consideration but let’s consider the basics.

What does an indoor garden require?

Obvious answers:

• Light to replace the sun
• Plants and/or seeds
• Growing medium to replace the earth (maybe)
• Fertilizer
• Watering method to replace rain, irrigation, and the garden hose (maybe)
• A climate (temperature, air flow, humidity) to match or better the outdoors

Not-so-basics:

• containers
• structure for holding containers
• fan
• de/humidifier
• PAR meter
  

  

Pick a Spot

Since the garden has its own light source, it isn’t necessary to try to set up near a window. You’ll want:

• clearance around the structure
• proximity to an outlet for powering the light, timer, and a fan to move the air to reduce humidity which could turn the basement musty/moldy
• avoid setting up near the furnace or HVAC since they could disrupt the optimal temperature range
• Can more than one spot serve? Picture a mini citrus grove here, herbs and vegs there, and berries and roots elsewhere.

Accessories

• temperature gauge with a humidity feature
• watering can
• plant food  (unless you’re using an aquarium. More on that later)

Let’s briefly consider each of those obvious requirements.

Illuminating the garden

Since plants will be spending their entire grow cycle indoors, it’s typical to use full-spectrum lights. These can be LED or fluorescent. In his excellent article on full spectrum LED lighting, Kevin of Epic Gardening explains what to look for and explains why. A key point:

• PAR, not lux, is the measure of light intensity to care about. Photosynthetically Active Radiation is the range of light which is used the most in photosynthesis, the process by which plants use light to make food. When you shop for lighting, look for the PAR rating which should be within the 400-700 nanometers range.

Fluorescent lights contain mercury, a metal known to cause severe brain, respiratory, nerve, and digestive problems. Exposure primarily comes from contaminated food or water; at high levels, it can be fatal.

When a fluorescent bulb breaks, the mercury is released as a vapor which will, of course, settle on any nearby surface. It’s important to know what to do if that happens. Just consider the risk of a bulb breaking over and into your garden.

Produce List

What works best for container gardens in general would suit a basement garden. Look for miniature varieties where possibe. Try:

• Leafy greens
• Herbs
• Climbers (tomatoes, cucumbers, peas), if your space can accomodate a trellis
• roots?? (Just a side note, root vegetables can be grown outside into the winter months. A subject for another post.)
• Fruits such as berries are simple; citrus or melon may take more work. Stone fruit would probably be as complex as cacao.

Growing Medium

The soil used in an outdoor garden is generally too dense for indoor use.  This can block oxygen flow to the roots, stunting or preventing growth altogether. And you may be bringing indoors pests or other undesirables like unsanctioned manure, dead animals, or toxins.

Commonly found ingredients in potting soil include:

• peat moss
• wood shavings
• composted green waste
• Perlite
• earthworm castings
• forest humus
• guano
• micronutrients
• fish or crab meal

These can hold water and nutrients and drain very well. This is important since you’re only working with a comparatively tiny amount of soil compared to what’s in an outdoor garden.

Fertilizer

Fertilizer supplies the nutrients needed for plant food in the soil. There are various types; but of course here we’re partial to organic.

Chemical fertilizers aren’t necessarily cooked up in a science lab. But they do originate from minerals which may or may not be of a synthetic origin. The basic minerals are phosphorus, nitrogen, and potassium. Salts like molybdenum, zinc, and copper and acids are often used in their production. Beneficial organisms in the soil may be killed off by poorly managed and long-term use of chemical fertilizers.

Organic fertilizers come from living sources, plant (or animal (manure, hooves, horns, blood, feathers, hides). Being nutrient-dense, over time it enhances soil.

Compost is a fertilizer that encourages recycling. If you want to learn more, check out our article on the science of composting. You can also learn how to set up an easy composting system.

Growing in Water

Many indoor gardeners skip soil altogether and grow plants in water. Hydroponics is a topic worthy of its own article, so, for now, we’ll just note the four basic methods:

ebb and flow – nutrient-rich water floods the plant roots for several hours before being drained away

wick –nutrient-rich water seeps through a growing medium, usually sand or some type of composite, to water and feed plants

nutrient film technique – a very shallow trickle of nutrient-rich water (that’s the film) continuously flows across the roots of plants held in growing baskets or a tube

continuous drip – nutrient-rich water is pumped to each plant via its own supply line

Hydroponics is considered by many to be the best option for indoor growing. Compared to soil, it

1. saves water. Water is reused in a constant cycle.
2. is the ultimate in clean food growing. Most pests live in the soil. No soil…
3. produces a higher yield. Nutrients and water are in direct contact with the roots, creating an optimal growing environment. Plants can grow up to 50% larger than soil-grown plants. Plus, there are no worries about aerating the soil, nutrient runoff, or missed watering days.
4. is space efficient. More can be grown in a smaller space
5. can yield a year-round harvest. The same plant can produce more than one harvest.

Aquaponics is similar but uses live fish, an aquarium, as a nutrient source. The fish get needed oxygen, and the plants get nutrients.

Watering the Soil

Watering can be done a few creative ways, from self-watering containers which have a reservoir of water beneath the planter, to automated irrigation systems made of:

• a tank that holds several gallons of water, enough to last a week
• a length of hose to channel the water from the tank to the plants
• dippers that connect to the hose and direct the water into
• stakes that are inserted near the plant
• a little computer that directs the flow rate of the water, sounds an alarm when the water tank is running low, and monitors other activity. New model systems are compatible with Amazon Alexa and Google Home.

Air and Environment Control

Basements can be notoriously damp or stiflingly tight, two conditions which will discourage growth. Basically, a plant would suffocate in an environment that is too wet, especially if the soil doesn’t properly drain. If the environment is too dry, it will stunt plant growth.

• A fan will keep air circulating, allowing plants to breathe.
• A (de)humidifier will ensure proper moisture levels in the air. It can also discourage unwanted mildew or mold.
• A thermostat will ensure optimal temperatures are kept for the best plant yield.

Investing in a device that tells temperature and humidity is a must. What’s optimal depends on what you’re planning to grow.

How much will this cost?

Could be a lot or A LOT, depending on the scope and materials you’ll use. Growing lights alone can run from $25 to $1000. Where you obtain supplies matters, the difference between specialty and general sites.

But some things – containers, pipes, mats, light fixtures – can be reclaimed from a local reuse center, a good house or garage purge, or a Craigslist curb alert.

But some things you don’t want to go cheap on; have the wiring of any electrical component checked by a licensed electrician for safety’s sake. Reusing a refrigerator is a great idea when the refrigerant is properly disposed of.

If you really want the DIY experience, there are several sites with build-your-own indoor garden instructions. If you’re in to reuse or upcycling, there are hundreds of ideas out there for creating planters out of old desks, dressers, pianos, tubs.

Or you could get the shopping out of the way and just purchase a complete indoor garden kit. Be careful you’re not just buying an herb garden kit or a starter kit for seedlings that will be planted outdoors. You’ll want a system that will grow veggies and herbs entirely indoors.

Room to Grow or Growing Room

If you’re worried about containing your garden – say you don’t want the pets ambling through the seedlings or the tots noshing on leaves –  there is a way to close off the garden.

Some ‘generously’ offer a little viewing window but overall, it’s like growing your crop in a ginormous plastic or mylar portable clothes closet. They’re sometimes called tents, a quick search on Amazon shows pricing between $40 and $700.

If you have the budget to go alll out, convert or create a small room in the house into a sealed chamber with its own environment. If a $3-4,000 layout and a dizzyingly complex-sounding shopping list don’t scare you, you’ll be making a well-made investment for a sustained indoor gardening adventure.

To learn more about controlled environment agriculture, you’ll likely not find better than a 3-article series at Grozine, a website devoted to hydroponics, aquaponics, and vertical gardens. A few advantages of a grow room:

1. dedicated air system which eliminates drawing in fungal spores and bugs with outside air
2. a controlled environment producing consistent yields
3. water bill savings from creating a system which recycles water

This would be my fantasy, to open a door in the house and walk into a garden, complete with a stone-and-pebbled floor. Said the person having trouble finding a clear spot to put a garden. Do we really need to keep the family piano, Mom?

If an entire room is out of the question, beyond the clothes-closet clone are closets, also called growing boxes. Made of more durable material than the mylar, cloth, or vinyl of grow tents, open these tanning-booth-looking cabinets to find a complete ecosystem safely tucked away from the outside world.

Plants germinate and then grow under special growing lights. This is an investment of a minimum of $2000 for a soil-based garden. Soil-less (hydroponic) systems run from around $280 to over a thousand dollars.

You can choose complete systems which take up no more than 3’ x 1.5’ like those sold by SuperCloset or if you really want to build from scratch, get instructions for building your own closet for a third less money. And, yes, there are even instructions out there for converting a refrigerator into a garden cabinet.

What to Consider

An indoor vegetable garden can be an expensive undertaking. You’ll need to thoroughly plan what you’re growing and each plant’s particular needs, whether or not to use soil, electricity type, and other needs. Check out some of our recommendations for watering supplies, tools, and plants. And of course, you’ll need time; to check conditions, equipment functionality, pest checks, and harvesting.

Do you have room for a basement garden? More and more, it seems my dream is slipping away.

But I’ll continue this series because not enough attention is given to this most practical solution to emergency food supplies and the drive to ‘buy local’. You can’t get any more local than your basement, the little room down the hall, or the unused wall space in your kitchen/dining area.

You may notice that this article has very few pictures. That’s because a search for free-to-use photos of indoor gardens turned up thousands of pictures of outdoor gardens. The best that can be done now is to browse the sites of indoor garden container/kit vendors. Or you can take your own. And share them here.

And speaking of sharing, don’t forget to share this article if you found it useful and/or interesting.

Next, in Chapter 3 of this series, we’ll consider why fungus growing in the basement could be a good thing.

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