Growing an indoor garden can be easy if you have the right indoor gardening supplies. Regardless how big or small your garden will be, there are a few important questions to ask yourself before starting.
An Indoor Gardening Supplies Plan
The first thing on your checklist isn’t something you’ll pick up from your local gardening store. Knowing what you’d like to grow and determining how you’re going to do it should be established first. Do this before you go purchasing any plants, pots, or spiffy gardening gloves. Each item on the gardening supplies checklist can affect any one of the others. Know the needs of your plants, make your shopping list, and ensure every piece of your gardening plan fits together.
Decide Which Plants Before Buying Indoor Gardening Supplies
Deciding which plants you’d like to grow will have the biggest effect on the indoor gardening supplies you’ll need. They’ll determine the size of your pots, the type of soil you’ll need, and your lighting requirements.
Also, decide whether you’ll be growing your plants from seeds, pre-grown seedlings, root cuttings, or starting with an adult plant. Young plants tend to have different needs than full grown plants. And they may affect the type of lighting or fertilizers you’ll require.
If you aren’t picky about what you’ll grow, choose from a list of low maintenance indoor plants. Begin growing your indoor garden from there and see where it takes you.
Pots and Containers
When choosing a pot for your plants, it’s important to consider both the size and content of the plant.
To start, you’ll need to know what type of plant you’d like to grow, as this will help you determine the size and space that its roots will need. Some plants have fairly small root systems, while others require more space in order to grow and thrive. Additionally, knowing how big your plant might get can help you choose a pot that is the right size for its eventual size.
In order to choose the best pot for your plants, it’s also important to consider the content of the pot itself. For example, some plants prefer well-draining soil that allows oxygen to flow freely through their roots, while others prefer more moisture-retentive soil. Additionally, larger pots can generally accommodate more soil than smaller pots, allowing for better root growth and healthier plants overall. Ultimately, choosing a pot that suits both the needs of your specific plants and the space available in your garden or indoor growing area is key to ensuring that your plants thrive.
The pots’ material and drainage efficiency are other factors to consider. Clay pots or containers made from absorbent, upcycled materials may not hold water as efficiently. This will mean your plants might require more frequent watering. Metal or plastic pots will hold more moisture and will rely more heavily on drainage holes to release excess water. Drainage holes are an important feature for novice indoor gardeners because they’ll be the greatest fail-safe for over watering.
Soil
Topsoil and potting soil may seem similar but they’re worlds apart. Topsoil is best for outdoor gardens. It will not drain properly when used in an enclosed space. Potting soil is designed to be fluffier. Because of this, it allows for better drainage. Heavier potting soils are better for plants that will be in direct sunlight. They won’t dry out as fast, while lighter soils are better for plants that don’t require as much water.
Certain plants will also benefit from the use of fertilizers when they’re in their more active growing stages. This is also true with depleted nutrients in the soil, or if using potting mix with a low soil ratio. When using outdoor garden fertilizers, be sure to follow the instructions listed for indoor gardens. You’ll probably need to reduce the amount you use to about ¼. Plants in a hydroponic system will depend entirely on liquid nutrients as they have no soil to absorb minerals from.
Watering System
Water is vital for your plants and knowing how much water your specific garden need is imperative. Some plants prefer a light misting, some don’t like their leaves to get wet at all, some prefer bottom watering, and some love a heavy downpour. You can use pretty much anything to get water to your plants, but some watering cans are better suited to give water in specific ways. A watering can with a long spout will let you get water under the leaves and right into the soil while a sprinkler attachment or a misting bottle is better for plants that love getting a gentle rain shower.
A drip tray is essential for any pots with drainage holes and larger trays may be necessary if you do a lot of deep watering with your plants. For plants that prefer bottom watering, a large drip tray can be filled with water to allow the lowest roots to soak up the most of the water. A large container to submerge your pot in is also a handy tool for bottom watering.
If you go with a hydroponics system, your containment setup will also be your watering system. Your hydroponics system will have a water reservoir that requires refilling at daily or weekly intervals. This will also be how you deliver the liquid nutrients to your plant. Using a hydroponics system combines many of the tools you’ll require into one super efficient growing system.
Lighting
Many house plants can survive on low light while others require 8 or more hours of bright, direct sunlight year round. A sunny, south facing window can usually provide ample light for these sun worshipping species. If you want to grow a light loving plant but have very little natural light available, there are endless options for purchasing grow lights. They come in all shapes, sizes, spectrums, and price ranges. Plenty of inexpensive lights are available if your plants need even just a tiny boost.
Space
While extra space isn’t something you can go and buy at the store, space saving options are. Some indoor gardens can take up a lot of room and if you don’t have adequate space to grow as much as you’d like you should consider growing some of your garden along your walls or hanging from your ceiling. Hanging baskets and indoor vertical garden planters can allow you to grow huge gardens while taking up only a fraction of the room.
Start With a Garden Kit with Indoor Gardening Supplies
Many of the previously mentioned indoor gardening supplies can be purchased in one convenient bundle in the form of an indoor garden kit. These kits can range from a few packs of seeds and soil discs to a hydroponic tank equipped with grow lights, touch screens, and timers. Using a kit may take a lot of guesswork out of the planning process and can be helpful to new and seasoned gardeners alike.
Once you have your whole indoor garden plan mapped out and you know all the pieces fit together you can grab the supplies you’ll need and get to work. Even if you research your plants in advance, you may not realize some of their needs until they communicate it to you. Pay attention to the appearance of your plants because they’ll try to let you know if they need more or less water, a larger pot, or extra nutrients in their soil.
