Off The Grid Living: Growing Vegetables Indoors

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Growing Vegetables Indoors

Written by: Esther Food, Survival Gardening

As the winter months descend upon us all, it can be a bit depressing thinking about the layers of snow blanketing our growing spaces. While some vegetables will certainly do just fine in the colder months, there are certain plants that simply won’t survive between the first and last frosts.

A great alternative, if you have the space to devote to it, is growing some of your favorite vegetables indoors during the winter months. Even if you don’t have a greenhouse, you can still grow your vegetables on a shelf in your kitchen, in a garden shed, or even in your basement if you have the right tools and equipment.
There are several gadgets that, through the hydroponics process, will allow you to grow cherry tomatoes on your kitchen, in your living room, or even in your office at work. However, while these gadgets certainly do have their novelty appeal, they can be very costly and also limit you in what you can actually grow. There are other options, however, so read on!
Indoor Growing Requirements
Naturally there will be different requirements for the various plants that you are growing, but the majority of them will require at least six hours of sunlight a day. There are five essential factors to growing your vegetables indoors, and they are as follows:
Levels of light
Growing medium
Levels of humidity
Air circulation
Temperature
If you have a room in your home that receives a constant amount of light during the day, then this could be your best choice. Another alternative is to do some good research into growing lamps.

Grow bulbs are available at most home improvement stores and can fit into any lighting fixture; however, they may not provide your plants with all of the light that they need. These grow bulbs are typically best suited for keeping your orchards and African violets thriving indoors.

The amount of light and the intensity of the light will determine how long your plants remain active and will ensure that photosynthesis is taking place at an acceptable rate. Light intensity has a marked effect on how the plant grows, flowers, and fruits; the intensity of the light is dependent on how close the plant is to the source of light.
Vegetables that produce fruit, like cucumbers, peppers and tomatoes, will have much higher light requirements than salad greens, herbs, and root vegetables like carrots and beets. Compact fluorescent lights can serve you very well if you are growing greens, sprouts, and herbs, so long as the source of light is no higher than four inches above the plants.
Your growing medium is just as important for your indoor plants as it is for your vegetables grown outdoors. If the soil is not providing the plants with adequate nutrition then you will have just as many problems indoors as those you face outdoors when your soil pH levels and nutritional values are off. Before you plant your seeds, do a thorough test of the soil that you plan to use, and you can effectively avoid problems that would hamper your growing progress.
Levels of humidity are important to keep an eye on, otherwise you face concerns with overly dried out plants or plants that are developing fungal infections and rot. During the winter months, we tend to heat our homes using forced-air heating systems that are incredibly effective at drying out everything in our homes. To maintain a good humidity level, you may need to consider investing in a simple cool mist humidifier that can counteract the forced air dryness…..More Here

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