Mini Indoor Greenhouse

The term “mini indoor greenhouse” is a loosely defined one that can be used to describe virtually any freestanding indoor greenhouse, even ones that are bigger than your walk- in closet. In this article, we will discuss the very smallest indoor greenhouses, used to grow herbs or small flowers.

An Indoor Herb Garden

With a mini indoor greenhouse, it is possible to grow fresh herbs on your kitchen counter top, as well as cherry tomatoes, chili peppers and chives. Imagine making a chili con carne or pasta dish with ingredients you’ve grown yourself. You can make a DIY indoor greenhouse with a seed bed, a wooden frame and some plastic sheeting, or you can buy a variety of kits or ready made greenhouses, containing everything you need to grow plants in even the smallest space.

Hydroponics and Aeroponics

If you are setting up a mini indoor greenhouse in your kitchen or living area, it’s quite likely that you don’t want to risk getting potting soil everywhere. One way around this is to use a hydroponic or aeroponic greenhouse. Hydroponics refers to the art of growing plants without using soil, while aeroponics uses no growing medium at all.

In hydroponics, the main medium for delivering nutrients to the plants is water. Some gardeners plant the roots directly into a solution of minerals dissolved in water, while others use an aggregate medium such as diahydro (a natural sediment made from fossilized algae), coconut fiber, gravel, brick shards or mineral wool.

In aeroponics, the roots are not placed into any liquid. Rather, they are suspended in the air and constantly misted with a fine solution of water and nutrients. Aeroponic techniques were originally developed by NASA, who became interested due to their potential for growing plants in zero gravity environments, but they have since been incorporated into mini indoor greenhouses designed for home use. They are less messy than hydroponic systems, but considerably more expensive. A home aeroponic garden will typically cost in the region of $150, while the smallest hydroponic systems sell for a fraction of that.

Pests in Your Hydroponic Greenhouse

One advantage of growing plants hydroponically is that the lack of soil makes your plants much less attractive to pests. However, no plants are immune from bugs and blights. It is best to avoid the use of harsh chemical pesticides, as these can get into the nutrient solution and poison your plants from within. Organic solutions for pest control include extract of orange peel (d-Limonene), which can be sprayed onto plants, suffocating pests; herbal extracts which kill a broad spectrum of pest species; and “friendly” bugs that prey on the pest species whilst leaving your plants untouched.