Last Updated on February 14, 2024 by Lifevif Team and JC Franco
What type of gardening is best suited to your personality and your unique home situation? For me, both indoor and outdoor gardening have been of interest to me over the years. If you have heard of indoor gardening and wondered what it is all about, you have come to just the right place to learn all you need to know.
I am an avid gardener, and while I do traditional outdoor gardening, I do a lot of indoor gardening, too. It’s quite safe to say that I have dabbled in just about every kind of gardening there is.
Indoor gardening is the practice of growing plants indoors, usually in some type of container, instead of outdoors. There are various types of indoor gardening, including:
- Potted house plants
- Container gardening
- Hydroponic gardening systems
- Vertical gardening walls
Why is indoor gardening important, and who is it that stands to gain the most from it? I have found that indoor gardening has proven highly beneficial for creating home gardens, industrial gardens, office décor, arboretums, and urban parks. Absolutely anyone and everyone can do indoor gardening and derive great value from it.
When you opt for indoor gardening, you overcome space issues and create an artificial garden environment in an indoor space. If you would like to find out more about the several types of indoor gardening and the types that are most common, read on.
10 Main Benefits of Indoor Gardening
What can indoor gardening offer the average person that outdoor gardening cannot? For me, the allure of indoor gardening has always been associated with convenience.
I have managed to keep my indoor garden thriving by just giving it a few moments every day, whereas my outside garden takes hours each week. That said, I don’t plan to give up my outside garden any time soon. But it must be said, for the elderly looking to keep a garden going without the physical drain and effort required; an indoor garden would be ideal.
You are probably wondering if indoor gardening is what you need in your life. Any type of garden is a commitment and requires effort, so it’s best to do your investigative work before you get started on a new gardening project. Of course, before you can decide if indoor gardening is for you, it is a good idea to know what the associated benefits are. Below are a few for you to consider:
1. Space management.
Indoor gardens make it possible for you to overcome space issues. If you do not have enough space to garden outside, you can do a bit of gardening inside.
2. Solves the no-garden problem.
Some people live in apartments that have no gardens or balconies, which means that gardening is not possible outside. That does not have to hinder your desire to garden. If you have no outside yard, you can still garden indoors by making use of space-saving planting systems.
3. Home aesthetics.
You can beautify the home with indoor plants. A house plant can spruce up the room and give it real life.
4. Limit the impact of harsh climates.
Some climates are way too hot or too cold for plants to thrive. You can avoid the scourge of harsh climates on your plants by growing them indoors.
5. Year-round produce.
Some home gardeners find it disappointing that they can only enjoy their favorite herbs and vegetables during certain months of the year. Often snow and ice make for unpleasant growing environments for your plants. When you choose to do indoor gardening, you can still enjoy fresh produce and beautiful flowers during the winter months.
6. Anyone can do it.
Indoor gardening is something that the family can do together. Everyone can take their turn to water the plants, harvest the produce, and check on progress. It’s a great way to include the entire family in a communal project.
7. Educational.
Having an indoor garden is a great way for you and the kids to learn about growing plants. You will learn just what each plant needs through trial, error, and observation. You can help the kids learn where their food comes from and help them learn a better understanding of the circle of life.
8. Save personal energy.
If you have an outdoor garden, you are going to need to put in a lot of physical effort. An indoor garden often requires less effort than an outdoor garden.
9. Fewer tools required.
Outdoor gardening requires a wide selection of tools to be used, such as a wheelbarrow, rake, shovel, hose pipe, and more. Indoor gardening requires minimal tools such as a handheld trowel, and a jug or watering can.
10. Therapeutic.
Indoor gardening is very therapeutic. In fact, sharing your home’s interior space with plants provides a sense of calm. Make the most of it as plants are far cheaper than a professional therapist.
Now that you know what the benefits of indoor gardening are, you can take a look at the various types of indoor gardening and decide which one is for you.
4 Main Types of Indoor Gardening
There are several types of indoor gardening that you can look into. Below are a few types of indoor gardening that I believe will add value to your life:
1. Potted house plants.
If you are not looking to grow vegetables and herbs, you might opt for regular planter pots. These are typically used for growing flowers, creepers, and “show” plants that add aesthetic appeal to the home. When you choose to do potted plants in the home, you will have a selection of pots to choose from, including plastic pots, resin pots, metal pots, and even cement pots.
2. Container gardening.
Container gardening is the practice of planting flowers, herbs, vegetables, and other plants into plastic pots, metal cans, and other types of containers that no longer have a purpose in the home. These plants are not planted right into the ground, as is the case without outdoor gardening.
Container gardening is great for those with minimal space and for those who want to repurpose empty containers in the home that would otherwise end up in a landfill site. Container gardening overcomes space limitations and provides portability for plants, which means you can move them from room to room as well as relocate them to a new home with ease.
3. Hydroponic gardening systems.
If you are looking for a way of growing plants without soil, hydroponic gardening is it. Instead of using soil, mineral nutrient solutions in a water solvent are used. This often results in much higher and stronger plant yields. There are plants that perform particularly well with hydroponic gardening, including lettuce, strawberries, spinach, herbs, and bell peppers.
To do hydroponic gardening indoors, you will either need to buy a hydroponic system or create one yourself. There is quite a useful guide on how to create your own hydroponic system available online here.
There are several benefits to hydroponic gardening, including:
- With a hydroponic system, you can grow your plants anywhere.
- Hydroponic gardening requires around 20% less space than regular outdoor gardening does.
- There is no need to use pesticides when doing hydroponic gardening.
- Hydroponic gardening uses about 90% less water than regular gardening.
- The system is re-usable, which means that water conservation is possible.
- You can grow truly fresh and organic vegetables inside your kitchen, if you want to.
4. Vertical gardening walls.
Vertical gardens are quite popular in conservatories, kitchens, and even patios, balconies, and so on. Vertical gardening is a method of growing different types of plants that are vertically suspended by a panel or pockets. These systems can be fabric or plastic hanging structures of pockets that are affixed to the wall or even hard plastic buckets that include a hydroponic growing system.
There are several benefits to doing vertical indoor gardening:
- Plants can be planted anywhere.
- Plants are highly portable and can be moved.
- Vertical gardens clean the inside air.
- A vertical garden wall provides noise insulation.
- Plants are protected against pests and diseases.
- Vertical gardens produce high-quality yields.
- By using a vertical garden wall, you can beautify the interior space.
- Some vertical garden walls come with a built-in self-irrigation system, which means minimal effort is required on your part.
In closing
If you have been wondering what indoor gardening is all about, now you know. There are many ways that you can do indoor gardening – you just have to play around with the options to see which is best suited to your personal preferences and, of course, the amount of time you have available. Whether you decide that indoor or outdoor gardening is for you; both are a fine choice. Enjoy!
This article was co-authored by our team of in-house and freelance writers, and reviewed by our editors, who share their experiences and knowledge about the "Seven F's of Life".
JC Franco
JC Franco is a New York-based editor for Lifevif. He mainly focuses on content about faith, spirituality, personal growth, finance, and sports. He graduated from Mercyhurst University with a Bachelor’s degree in Business, majoring in Marketing. He is a certified tennis instructor who teaches in the New York City Metropolitan area. In terms of finance, he has passed the Level I exam of the CFA program.