Would you like to grow vegetables and herbs but don't have a garden or would you like fresh salads from your own garden all year round? Then try home growing. Learn all about indoor gardening in this article.
More and more people are discovering a passion for gardening. Be it to test some of the many chili varieties or just to grow fresh vegetables yourself. Statistics show that the proportion of people who garden in their free time is steadily increasing.
But not everyone is lucky enough to have their own property or garden or enough space on the balcony. Thanks to homegrowing, they still have the opportunity to garden as they please. But what exactly is home growing?
Homegrowing means indoor gardening, i.e. gardening in the house or apartment. Homegrowing is much more than just growing vegetable seeds on the windowsill. It includes the option of leaving plants indoors from propagation to harvest without transplanting them later outdoors.
Plants need air, light, water, warmth and nutrients to thrive. Homegrowing takes all these points into account and creates an ideal climate for plant growth. This means that gardening can be carried out effectively in closed rooms, regardless of external conditions. The more extensive the equipment, the more automated the processes such as ventilation, watering and lighting.
Homegrowing essentials
In order to grow your own vegetables from cultivation to harvest completely in the house, you need basic equipment. Let's take a look below at what this includes.
Growbox
Grow boxes are mostly square tents in different basic dimensions, which are connected to a waterproof floor pan and with a height of up to 2 meters offer the plants enough space to grow. Smaller grow boxes have a basic size of 30 x 30 cm and a lower height of about 60 - 80 cm, larger grow boxes have a floor space of up to 2 x 2 meters and more. There are closable windows on the side walls and the option of installing a hose for the exhaust air. On the tent ceiling can alsospecial plant lamps can be attached.
Plant Lamps
Many gardeners know the problem: the seeds on the window sill don't really want to thrive in spring, despite the warmth and sufficient moisture, or they shoot up and become spindly thin. This is due to the lack of light, because in February and March the days are still quite short. This can be remedied by appropriate plant lamps that are hung in the grow boxes.
Which plant lamp is right for you depends on whether you only want to grow young plants or leave the plants indoors until they are harvested. Depending on the stage of growth, the plants have different light requirements or the plants can be optimally supported with the right light spectrum in their growth phases.
ventilation
As in small indoor greenhouses, grow boxes quickly develop their own unique climate. Since not every plant tolerates high humidity, for example, fans, fresh air supply and exhaust air transport can provide a remedy. This is particularly practical if you work and cannot ventilate manually during the day.
It is certainly easier for the beginner to buy a complete set. Well-equipped complete sets are available, for example, from Growland - grow shop for homegrow. In addition to the actual grow box, these also include accessories such as lighting, heating and irrigation, so that you can start gardening right away. Anyone who deals in detail with homegrowing will also find all kinds of useful accessories such as pots, different soils or timers that make gardening in the house very comfortable.
Soil and Fertilizer
The right potting soil is fundamentally important, regardless of whether you are dedicated to indoor or outdoor gardening. Choosing the right soil and fertilizer depends on what is being grown. Potting soil, for example, must not be too nutritious, otherwise it will do more damage to the plants than it will help.
If the plants are to remain in the grow box throughout the season, regular top-up fertilization is again important in order to achieve maximum yields.
Irrigation
You can water the plants with any spray bottle or small watering can. Above all, the young plants that have just sprouted benefit from the spray bottle, as they often buckle under the water jet from the watering can.
If the daily, sometimes repeated watering is too time-consuming, you can use special watering systems for the grow boxes. These supply the plants optimally with the rightamount of water In this way, longer periods of absence such as holidays can be easily bridged.
Many uses of grow boxes
Grow boxes can be used all year round, completely independent of external influences. Early cultivation can bring the gardening year forward by a few weeks. In this way, plants that otherwise cannot be harvested here due to various circumstances can grow and mature well.
In the spring you can prefer vegetables such as peppers, tomatoes, chillies and physalis and let them germinate in the grow box. Plants that later come outside can then be removed and placed in larger pots. But plants that remain in the grow box also need a larger pot to continue growing.
» Tip: It is important to ensure that plants with similar germination temperature requirements are grouped together. The corresponding germination temperatures are given in cultivation or sowing calendars.
All year round, lettuce and herbs can be left in the grow box, which bring fresh greenery to the plate, especially in winter. Thanks to modern technology, seasonal vegetables such as tomatoes and peppers can also be harvested in autumn and winter, long after they would have frozen in the field. You should familiarize yourself with the technology and the needs of the plants in order to set the correct exposure time and heat, among other things.
Grow boxes can of course also be used to overwinter plants. The physalis should be mentioned here as an example, which can be dug up in late summer and placed in a large pot in order to then overwinter it in a grow box. This eliminates the hassle of re-sowing the following spring.
Overview of advantages and disadvantages
| Advantages | Cons |
| + The garden season can be brought forward and extended | - Simultaneous cultivation only possible for varieties with similar needs |
| + Variable use (cultivation, overwintering,… ) | - Investment in basic equipment |
| + Gardening also possible without a suitable garden | - Monthly follow-up costs (electricity for heating and ventilation, water) |
| + Constant climate makes breeding and rearing easier |
Conclusion
Growboxing is a great alternative for anyone who wants to garden but doesn't have the land to do so. The garden year can also be extended and used more effectively. However, should be in advance next to thepurchase costs, the follow-up costs must also be considered so that there are no nasty surprises when the next electricity bill is billed.