Indoor Vegetable Gardening

While outdoor vegetable gardening is by far the most common method of raising a crop of produce, some folks don't have the ability to grow their own garden outdoors. Some may not have the space, like those living in apartments or townhouses, and others may not have the time or the conditions that are conducive to a successful garden.

If you are unable to begin a garden in your own backyard, but miss the freshness of home grown vegetables, consider indoor vegetable gardening as an option. Indoor vegetable gardening is much easier than you might think, and space is not an issue since many plants can be grown on a patio or right on your windowsill.

Advantages to Indoor Vegetable Gardening

There are actually a number of advantages to indoor vegetable gardening that can make this an attractive option to taking your hobby outdoors. First, with indoor vegetable gardening, you dont have to worry about a hail storm or an early frost killing those crops that you have worked so hard to cultivate. This means that you can enjoy fresh, home grown veggies year round.

You also don't have the problem with garden pests with your indoor vegetable garden, since you are able to control the environment of your plants much more effectively. Finally, an indoor vegetable garden can dress up a south-facing window with many pretty color and aromas for you to enjoy all year. Think of how refreshing it will be to watch tomatoes ripen on the vine while the snow flies outdoors.

The Basics of Indoor Vegetable Gardening

The two main factors to successful indoor vegetable gardening is to find the right location that will get plenty of sun (like that south-facing window) and the appropriate containers that will allow for sufficient root growth and drainage. Your containers can come from a variety of places, from that gorgeous ceramic pot that coordinates with your kitchen decor, to the used milk carton with the top cut off.

Read Also: Vegetable Gardening and Insects That Can Help

Keep in mind that your container should allow for at least six to eight inches of soil for proper root development, and sufficient drainage to keep your plant healthy. Beyond that, you are really only limited by your imagination. Fill that container with a good, lightweight potting soil and your indoor vegetable garden is ready to go.

Indoor vegetable gardening is a great way to enjoy your hobby all year long, and will give you a bountiful harvest of fresh vegetables right through the winter. Start on your indoor vegetable garden today and enjoy those yummy results! 

Tips: While buying different tools for your garden always read reviews. This website covers various power tool and garden tools review.

Vegetable Gardening and Insects That Can Help

There is nothing worse than watching a beautiful garden wilt and die before your eyes. Chances are if your beautiful seedlings just stopped growing you are having and insect infestation. Vegetable gardening and insects go hand in hand. Every gardener will tell you horror stories of vegetable gardening and insects that include tales of Japanese beetles, aphids, and squash borers. What you might not know is that vegetable gardening and insects don't have to be at odds with each other. There are many insects that are highly beneficial to your garden just like a chain link fence for your property.

The praying mantis is one insect that every garden needs. When it comes to vegetable gardening and insects, the praying mantis is the best predator you can find. Called the praying mantis because its long legs are folded as if it is in prayer, this insect can be as big as 6 inches long, although most only reach a length of 2 inches.

Their green color helps to camouflage them from preying birds and allows them to hide from the pests they like to hunt. The average garden mantis will eat all sorts of garden pests including beetles, squash borers, and grasshoppers. These insects are so strong that the larger ones have even been known to eat small lizards or humming birds, yet they are perfectly safe to have in the garden and don't bite or sting the way other insects do.

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Ladybugs are another beneficial insect that can help you to control pests in the garden. Ladybugs feed on aphids and mites that are practically invisible to the naked eye. Though small these garden pests can do extensive damage to your plants, so filling your garden with ladybugs is always a good idea. You can purchase live ladybugs through garden catalogs or even at some nurseries. As long as there are aphids in your garden, the ladybugs will not fly away, but will continue to eradicate them.

Some Words of Warning When it Comes to Vegetable Gardening And Insects

If you plan to release a praying mantis and ladybugs in your garden at the same time, make sure that you have plenty of harmful bugs for both of these types of critters to hunt. If the bad bug supply goes down, your praying mantis will start to eat your ladybugs. Most of the time, they will leave ladybugs alone, but if there is no other food supple, your ladybugs are in danger. It is also important that you never release these beneficial insects into gardens where pesticide has been recently sprayed. Allow at least two weeks for pesticide to dissipate before you release beneficial insects into your garden.