Flowering house plants will flower year after year if given the proper conditions.
In the past winter meant months and waiting and nothing to do but plan ahead for spring without any reprieve and without any way of practising the hobby of gardening. Times have changed thankfully. Today indoor growing is becoming much more popular. Especially in winter. Indoor grow lights have advanced and there are choices for you to do indoor growing from tabletop light stands to full-blown grow tents or Climate Rooms. Lights stands are perfect for growing herbs and the like in your kitchen. These are great for putting into sunny areas in your home where you wish to grow and you just add light as needed. So, if we are getting only 10 hours of light then you set up your timer to add another 6 hours or so of artificial light which makes a sufficient amount of light to grow confidently. Of course, the great part is that if you don’t have a sunny area the lights can be set to run 16 hours a day and will work perfectly even without natural sunlight.
Climate Rooms are whole other level of indoor growing and they can turn any available space in your home into an indoor garden. These tents are perfect for gardeners who like to start plants that need a long summer which we don’t have, or plants that you would like to start from seed that take a long time be ready before they can transplanted into our gardens. Things like petunias, strawberries and peppers need months to come to fruition and a great way to get well ahead of summer is to start growing these plants in the deep winter. You can also grow tomatoes and other veggies that can be harvested all through the winter, which is an amazing way to get your gardening fix! There are many types of lights that you can utilize in your tent from LED to full spectrum metal halide and everything in-between. This means you don’t limit yourself and that you can grow hydroponically, or in soilless mixtures, or even speciality growing mediums. Pretty much anything you can grow outside and maybe a few that you can’t, you can now grow inside no problem. Here are a few tips when looking into your new indoor garden:
Choose a set up that will fit your needs. If you only plan of growing small amounts of plants a t-stand light will do. Larger amounts will need bigger lights that cover more area.
Choose your grow tent in person to check that the frame is robust enough to carry your lights and that the canopy is well made and the zipper is easy to use and well sewn in.
Consider using two tents one for propagation and one to transfer to, or use one tent for plants that need less light and one for plants that need more.
Choose a good spot for your tent. It will need access to water and power. Although most tents catch water overspill you may want to avoid carpet or hardwood.
Ensure you have enough light to adequately cover the plants you are growing. It might be a good idea to know what is happening in your tent when you are not watching. High low temps and humidity gauges are good things to know.
Keep in mind all those tiny seeds you have sown will outgrow your tent if you overdo it so leave room to grow.
Consider venting your tent. Air movement is critical and a vent can also evacuate excess moisture. Good ventilation will also ensure your tent doesn’t get too hot.
If you’re not sure about indoor growing or have questions just come in and see us.
–Greengate Garden Centres SPECIAL OFFER: 10% discount off purchases. Members must show Best My Nest VIP card at time of purchase. Exclusions: Stihl, Big Green Egg, Traeger or Department 56 products.
