A Simple DIY Home garden

After 2020 I decided that it is a good time to build a garden inside our home. In 2019 we grew tomatoes and using upside down hanging planters and green peppers in my backyard. The upside down planters, although easy to use, did not result much of a yield. In 2020 we decided to grow more vegetables in the ground without using the hanging planters. This is A simple DIY home garden.

Easy to start Indoor Gardening For Beginners

A Simple DIY Home Garden

When you buy produce from the grocery store during the winter season, collect the seeds or save their base to regrow roots. For instance, red peppers, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, white potatoes, celery, kale, lemons, carrots, eggplant, onions are just some items used to create an indoor garden. These are some great vegetables to start with, especially for those living in a colder climate.

I used the seeds from the bell peppers, tomatoes, eggplant, lemons, apples and cantaloupe and set them aside, while planting others. Also, I cut the ends of the kale and put them into water in a bowl to grow roots and did the same with our celery.  

To plant seeds inside your home use egg cartons or small coffee cups to start. First, make small holes for drainage in the pods and then add a little soil. Then poke a hole in the centre of the soil. Plant a couple of green and red pepper seeds in them. Drizzle a little water and place the carton on top of the fridge to stay warm in the dark. Water them every other day.

                                                A Simple DIY Home Garden

It takes approximately 7-10 days for the seeds to sprout. Once a few seeds sprout, take one seedling and place it in a larger container with more soil. When the plants are placed outside, they will be able withstand the erratic spring weather.

The Value of Produce

Visit a garden centre and buy seeds to start growing plants. However, we do not need to buy seeds to build a garden for our home. Although some may say that vegetables do not grow if you use seeds from produce, this is not true because I tried and it worked. 

I am using the seeds taken out from tomatoes bought at the grocery store. The seeds went in soil. I waited for the seeds to sprout, which is between 7-10 days. Green stems began showing up, a sign that seeds from one tomato are producing stems for more tomatoes.  

In the winter time find places in your home that provide a few hours of sunlight each day for your plants to receive natural light.

The Remaining Seeds 

For the remaining tomato seeds, I put them in a bowl of water and let them ferment for 7-10 days.  When it grew a little mould on the top of the water, I rinsed the seeds off in a strainer and dried them. Now we can store them for the next summer.

Growing Kale and Celery Inside Your Home

For the kale and celery, cut the stems about 2-3 inches long. Afterwards, let the kale and celery sit in a coffee cup with water for roots to grow. It takes approximately two weeks to see roots come out. 

Eventually, the kale and celery go into a bigger container with some soil. In the containers the vegetables can grow much faster because they have more space.

Carrots

For the carrots, I cut the ends off the carrots, about one inch long, and put them in a bowl with water cut end facing down. Let the plants sit in the sun, along with the other vegetables. These carrots grew very large green stems and leaves. When they flower I can harvest carrot seeds from them. I plan to plant those seeds to grow carrots next year.

Sweet Potato

I took one full sweet potato and added water into a flower vase. One sweet potato is submersed in water half way. We need to give it some time for some roots to start to show up. It can take at least a month. Eventually, you will notice a thin white root growing out from the bottom of the sweet potato.

This is when you can transplant it into a container and wait for slips to sprout which are what you harvest and plant to grow more sweet potatoes.

Saving Containers for Planting Vegetables

A Simple DIY Home Garden

A while back, we bought a large can of chickpeas and kept the container. I filled the container with soil adding the sweet potato into it and covering it up. I added a bit of water each day letting it sit along with the other plants in the sun. After another 4 weeks, leaves start to show and are big. These slips will be ready for planting in the summer soon. 

I planted 6 lemons seeds, not thinking anything would come out of it but something did. All the seeds from the lemons are sprouting and are growing small stems and leaves. We will have little lemon trees in planters that we can bring inside for the winter as we live in a Northern climate zone. 

Most of the planting is done slowly and gradually as the process begins around the end of January. The sweet potato can start in mid-late February.

Start Growing In The Winter

Building a garden inside your home, especially for those of us living in colder climates is a practical idea. It is best to maximize the sun exposure of your plants so that they are strong by the time June hits for them to have between 3-4 months of maximum growth. Planting them outside with the seeds sprouted and leaves out already, growing tall, will help them develop faster once they are planted in your garden. 

Another option is to use LED grow lights for your plants if there is insufficient sunlight inside your home. Although you are using artificial light, it will still provide sufficient growth for your plants during the winter. Their electricity consumption is low and you can keep it on for 8 hours per day.

Take advantage of this short period of time throughout the year. Since this time is a small fraction of the year and needs to grow as abundantly as possible, it is best to start your planting inside your home by at least February. 

We started small. Not everything was planted in February. Some things we started in March, but for the most part it’s a good idea to start at least 6-8 weeks ahead. If your house does not have much sun or receives sun during different parts of the house throughout the day, change the placement of your seedlings around your house. 

By moving them around in the sun during the day, it helps resolve this problem.

Is it worth it to garden After 2020?

Yes, gardening after 2020 is worth it. Had I known everything was going to suddenly stop I would have started sooner. Even though I knew that something was up as far as our economy, the way things unfolded is not what I expected. In 2019 the desire to garden started, however there was a lack of time. In 2020, indoor gardening started. It is better late than never to begin.

What are some seeds to plant indoors?

I took some kidney beans and masoor beans, soaked them and left them in a cupboard in the dark wrapped in a moist paper towel. Once sprouts came out they were planted into small pods. The celery is easy to set up. By cutting off the ends and putting it in water, roots begin to grow in water. Once roots show up you can transfer them in a larger container and add soil. 

A Simple DIY Home Garden

I applied the same technique with kale, carrots, and onions. The white potatoes are prepped by allowing the eye buds to show up and grow before being planted. After little sprouts star showing up, plant them outside by the Spring. It takes a few weeks for the potato sprouts to come out. I began the process in early February and by early May the potatoes were ready to plant in our garden. You have to wait until there is no chance of frost before planting. This varies with each growing zone.

If you are considering starting a garden in 2023, try some of these simple techniques of planting indoors. See what grows strong that can be planted in the month of May.

January 2, 2022

Update: January 2, 2023-This post was published at an earlier date and has been updated with new information.