Grow salad greens indoors this winter season. Just because the summer and fall season came to an end, does not mean that our gardening has to. Growing our own salad greens can be a simple task to keep us inspired to live healthy and continue our love for gardening indoors.
Our fall salad greens like kale and Swiss chard are still growing in the garden outside, but their pace has slowed significantly. That is the reason why I started to grow salad greens indoors. You can grow your own garden on a window sill, or on a spare bookshelf.
Snowy cold outside, cozy warm indoors
When the winter months seemingly stop us from gardening outdoors (although it is possible with some tricks), let our passion for gardening move us to growing delights indoors. A good place to start is to grow salad greens. Vegetables like lettuce, mustard, arugula, and Pac Choi grow so quickly, you could have your own ‘salad bar’ ready in a few weeks.
Grow salad greens for your health
Growing salad greens indoors is a great option for continuous healthy greens over these winter months. On the chilly evenings, a hearty salad is a great addition to a warm meal. It is packed with nutrients to keep our immune systems well functioning throughout winter. Basically, our body needs it.
Grow salad greens in an emergency
There are also times when it is better to care for ourselves and not be dependent on the food chain. As of recent, we have had significant flooding around our area. The aftermath of natural disasters include supply chain issues and a lack of food available in grocery stores. Therefore, it is key to know how to start your own garden in a pinch. Minimal supplies are needed and we already have most of the materials handy around the house normally.
Grow your own salad greens to save money
Salad greens store bought can cost around $5 each time. Investing $5 for a pack of seeds, and $5 for a bag of soil, one could grow salad greens that would pay for itself by the third time of buying salad from the store.
Of course, if you want to grow a variety of salad greens, for example kale, lettuce, and Swiss chard, then you would invest in a few seed packets upfront. However, the good still outweighs the bad in that you will have ample seeds to grow salad for years to come. Seed companies sell seed packets that contain far more seeds than one family could need for one season. Therefore, one packet could last a very long time.
Materials to grow a salad indoors
- Tray, pot or holding container
- Soil
- Seeds
- Water
Containers
It is not necessary to buy new pots or containers. One can use simply any container that would hold soil and water.
It would be best to use a container that has some sort of drainage holes at the bottom, so that water can flow out if watered too much. Otherwise, create drainage holes by cutting or drilling holes in the base of the container.
When choosing your container, consider the size and how many seeds you plan to plant.
To learn what size container works well for the type for seeds that are growing, start with yogurt container and plant just a few seeds to start.
If you want to invest in some seed containers that will last for years, look at the supplies offer by Bootstrap Farmer. I have used their seedlings trays and were very impressed by the quality. It is an investment up front, but will save you money in the long run.
Soil
Many experts can give good advice on the type of soil you should use. Ask someone from a local garden centre to recommend a soil that would be best for growing seeds indoors. To grow salad greens, any nutrient rich soil would be sufficient.
Caution: do not use soil from the forest. For several reasons, the soil from a forest or a nearby road side may not be the best to use for this application. Although it could work fine, there might be other complications like heat destruction, insects, and so on, that could make it difficult for the greens to grow well. The key word is well. Although it might grow, it might not grow very well.
Seeds
Purchase seeds from a local grocery store or garden centre.
I have grown to love Baker Creek’s heirloom seeds because they sell heirloom seeds that have been preserved from seed lovers over the world.
Water
Water the soil before planting the seeds. That way the little seeds won’t wash around when the soil is watered afterwards. Do another light watering after planting the seeds. Keep in mind not to over-water. The soil should just be moist, not soaked.
Once the seedlings spring up, water lightly at the base of the seedlings. Try not to let the water pressure beat down the new seedlings.
Light
Direct light on the newly planted seeds will best help it germinate. If you do not have grow lights, place the containers in the best lit area nearby a window. It is great to use what one has, so don’t be discouraged if you do not have professional grow lights.
Find below the directions to grow salad greens indoors. If you start today, you can have salad greens ready in 4-6 week.
See how we did it
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Oh very cool that you are trying it right now! Let me know if you have success, then I can do it also next winter.
I don’t know yet, but I have some plants going in my basement!
I have not tried with potatoes yet, have you had success with it?
This is such a helpful post about growing salad greens indoors! My husband has been talking about wanting to do this for years… your post makes it seem totally doable!
That is so cool! Have you ever tried growing potatoes indoors?