Understanding Your Indoor Space
The first thing to do when considering indoor gardening is to examine what potential spaces you have available in your home to grow plants. Do you have a few windowsills you can add some plants to, or do you have bigger areas in your home you can dedicate to indoor gardening?
Additionally, you’ll need to evaluate what growing conditions each space can provide; what are the light, temperature, and humidity levels in each location. This information will help you decide what plants you can grow.
Evaluating Light, Temperature, and Humidity
To grow attractive healthy plants, you need to give them just the right growing conditions. Whatever spaces you have available for indoor gardening, you’ll need to evaluate the conditions in each one to figure out what plants will be suitable to grow there.
The most important factor is light. Plants can’t grow in the dark. Light is necessary for photosynthesis, the biological process in which plants manufacture energy for growth. Plants can get natural light through windows or can be provided artificial light with grow lights. Temperature and humidity are also important, but plants can often adapt better to varying levels of these factors than the wrong light levels.
The growing conditions in certain locations can differ from the rest of the home. Referred to as “microclimates,” they can have either a positive or negative impact on plant health. Areas that aren’t suitable for most plants include locations in the immediate path of an air conditioning unit (too cold) or a heating vent (too hot). Locations beside baseboard heaters or a wood stove should also be avoided. Other locations to avoid are those that are exposed to cold winter drafts from windows or exterior doors.
Indoor heating systems make the air very dry for plants. Some plants such as succulents can tolerate low humidity, while others like ferns prefer higher humidity to thrive. Two of the best rooms for indoor plants are bathrooms and the kitchen. These spaces are usually much more humid than the rest of the home. Given adequate lighting, plants will thrive in these spaces.
For a detailed guide to help you assess your space, go to “Assessing Your Space and Location”
Planning the Layout: Windowsills, Enclosed Balconies, or Dedicated Rooms
There are lots of options for indoor gardening. You can grow a few herbs or flowering houseplants on a windowsill or brightly lit side table; you may choose to allocate the sunny corner of a room to a collection of tropical houseplants; or you may have a whole room or enclosed balcony you can dedicate to your indoor garden for growing vegetables or flowering houseplants.
Your available spaces and the growing conditions they can provide will dictate what you’ll be able to grow indoors.
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