7 Winter-Busting Indoor Garden Projects to Lift Your Mood

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Even if you don’t mind winter, as gardeners we can’t help but think ahead to those beautiful spring days when we can start getting our hands in the dirt again. I gathered these indoor projects to stimulate those garden-loving endorphins and carry us through.

This is also a good time to prepare Christmas and Thanksgiving Cactuses and Poinsettias for reblooming.

Red Amaryllis bulbs in bloom. — Red Amaryllis bulbs in bloom

Indoor Garden Projects to Defy Winter

Indoor flowering bulbs by window. — Indoor flowering bulbs by window

Whether your winter is just a few months long or takes up most of the year, at some point we all say enough is enough. I need my garden fix!

And that’s where the power of indoor gardening can help.

I don’t know what it is about getting our hands in soil, sowing seeds, and caring for and coaxing them on, but it works. You can’t help but feel better when you’re growing stuff.

Have a look at the ideas, try what appeals to you, and before we know it, it will be spring planting time.

1Grow a Salad in Your Living Room

Salad greens growing in small plastic pots indoors. — Salad greens growing in small plastic pots indoors

Yes, you can grow all sorts of leafy salad greens in your home. All it takes is a simple fluorescent workshop light or LED grow lights (Amazon). A sunny window can also work in a pinch.

Leafy greens grow quickly and—good news—many are cut-and-come-again, meaning you can harvest what you need and the plants will continue producing more leaves.

Resources

2Give Peas a Chance

Edible pea plants growing in small pots indoors. — Edible green peas growing indoors

This is quirky and fun. Plus, you get flowers and edible peas!

If you sow pea seeds indoors, they will grow much like they do outdoors.

I provide trellis for mine and, no disrespect to tropical houseplants, but all that greenery makes it so cheerful inside.

And how crazy is it to walk just a few steps to harvest peas for dinner?

Resources

3Fall in Love With Seed Sowing

Seeds stored in mason jar and in plastic photo cases. — Seeds ready for indoor sowing

Now is the time to take stock.

Gather all your seeds and update your inventory list.

Note the age of your seeds and mark them so the older ones get used first.

Figure out what you want to grow this year, map it out on paper, and get your seed orders placed.

There is a printable digital garden planner in my shop if you like some structure.

For some of us, just reading seed catalogs is a mini-vacation.

Resources

Seed Viability Chart: How Long Seeds Last in Storage
How to Categorize Seeds
Two Smart Seed Storage Systems
A Weekly Sowing Plan for Growing Vegetables (Starting Indoors in Late Winter)
How to Make Seed Tapes

4Get a Jump Start on Spring

Seedlings in pots under LED grow lights indoors. — Simple LED grow lights

Become an indoor seed sower.

There are so many advantages to starting seeds indoors.

Not only do we get a jump start on the outdoor growing season, allowing us to inexpensively grow plants that need more time to mature than outdoor conditions allow, but we also get more growing options and lots of them.

No longer restricted by the offerings at local plant nurseries, we can grow whatever our hearts desire.

Resources

Seed Starting for Beginners: Sow Inside Grow Outside
What I Use to Start Seeds Indoors (Low-Cost Supplies)

LED Grow Lights

Recommended LED Lights

Seedlings | Barrina Super Bright White LED Lights | Amazon

These lights work nicely for indoor seed starting and growing young plants until it’s time for outdoor transplanting.

Indoor Flowering & Fruiting | Barrina Full-Spectrum LED Lights | Amazon

If you need lights for long-term growing including plants that can flower and fruit indoors, choose full-spectrum bulbs. You can also use these for seed starting.

Mail Order Seeds