Indoor Gardening Ideas

February may be the chilliest of them all, but it’s also the month of love! We’re going to share several ideas for making someone’s Valentine’s Day special with a few cute DIY gardening ideas that you can do from the comfort of your cozy house and give away with love.

Give the gift of an indoor herb garden

Looking to spruce up your culinary game?! An indoor herb garden is a great way to get a little greenery into your home, and a lot of flavor into your favorite dishes. Start by soaking your choice of herb seeds for an hour or so. Next, find 3 small, cute pots in which to plant them. Finally, place your soaked seeds in standard potting soil. The seeds should be placed about half an inch under the soil and about 2-inches apart. 

Tip: The eraser end of a pencil works great as a seed-starting tool to get the perfect-sized hole into your potting soil. All there is to do after the initial planting is to keep your herb garden watered, in a sunny space, and wait for the bounty! This makes a great gift as a kit for the recipient to assemble themselves, or as a flourishing trifecta of herbs… or you may just want to keep it for yourself

Grow your own ginger

It may be a surprise to hear that those ugly, knobby roots we know as ginger are actually great indoor plants (and they’re also a natural aphrodisiac.) Well-cared for indoor ginger will continue to produce roots for years. And if you’re looking for a larger harvest- or some to share with a friend, you can uproot the entire plant and replant a few rhizomes to start the process over again. Here’s how to do it:

You’ll want to start by soaking your root in warm water if it was purchased from the grocery store. This step will remove any chemicals as well as the growth inhibitor spray, which keeps it from sprouting in the store. If you’re the more patient type, you can also start your ginger from seed. Ginger prefers a wide, shallow pot filled with well-draining potting soil (you could opt for succulent soil.) Place your soaked ginger root with the eye bud pointing up and cover with 1-2 inches of soil. Make sure to water it well on this initial planting and put it in a place that stays warm but doesn’t get too much sunlight. These short days are ideal growing conditions for ginger! Continue to water lightly or spray with water and after a few weeks, you will see little shoots popping up from the soil. Small pieces of ginger can be harvested 3-4 months after growth begins. Pull aside some of the soil at the edges of the pot to find some rhizomes beneath the surface. Cut the needed amount from a finger near the edge of the pot and then return the rest back into the soil. This is truly the gift that keeps on giving!

Create a terrarium

Terrariums are an art form in themselves. Each one has such a different aesthetic depending on the glass container you’ve selected, which succulents you opted to plant, and what color & style of rocks were placed inside. They make lovely gifts and are so fun to assemble. If you’ve ever thought about trying your hand at creating your own terrarium, why not bring a little bit of the Southwest to your living room this February?!  

Heading to the second-hand store to see what kinds of vintage vases might be inspiring- otherwise, any hobby store or even department store will have a multitude of vases to select from. As far as the rocks you’ll use, maybe you’ve collected some beach glass, agates, or river stones from your travels. Or maybe you prefer to head to the pet store to see what kind of aquarium rocks might catch the eye- either way, choosing a variety of sizes, shapes, and colors will enhance the decorative appeal of your project. Make sure to layer with the smallest rocks on the bottom and the larger ones on top to avoid the smaller ones from slipping through and ending up in places you don’t want them. Finally, the living portion of your project: the plants! Big box home stores carry succulents year-round, so you shouldn’t have much trouble finding them. The hard part is choosing which ones to include. It can take a little bit of patience and finesse to position all the components artfully, but once you’re satisfied with the result, upkeep on your terrarium is so simple. A mere water mist to the roots every two weeks. Talk about low maintenance! Here’s a great little step-by-step guide if you’re ready to give it a try!