Most indoor gardeners begin growing plants on a windowsill, usually herbs or foliage house plants. They eventually graduate to grow lights when they move on to flowering plants or planting seeds, both of which require more light exposure. That’s when most experienced growers upgrade to one or more beautiful lighted plant stands, built for display as well as function.

Shown: Smaller tabletop grow systems and a one-shelf floor cart. Clicking images will take you to shopping pages.

Lighted plant stands come in a wide variety of sizes and styles, from tabletop grow lights to five-tier units. And with a stagnant economy, prices have never been better.

Why not take your indoor garden from shop lights in the basement to an elegant display in the living room with a beautiful lighted plant stand that will show off your green thumb, create a point of interest in the room, fill your view with blooms, and keep your herbs within reach of the kitchen.

More grow light styles:

Compare Grow Lights and Indoor Plant Light Stands:

In the few weeks, we lost two leaves quickly to rot (Rob’s Seduction and Rob’s Shadow Magic). We suspect that the air circulation in the area of the AeroGarden unit is insufficient, leading to the loss of the leaves as well as the additional problems with powdery mildew, surface mold, and rust rot noted below.

At 4 weeks, the back leaves are bleached out from too much light, and Rob’s Seduction is rotting away.

Leaf rot.

Plantlets are beginning to show at the base of Shirl’s Hawaiian Lei leaf.

All the plugs are choked with algae and spotted with white mold.

At 60 days, the situation is worse:

Rob’s Slap Happy is prolific but bleached out and tinged with rust.

Rob’s Boondoggle is very susceptible to powdery mildew.

Shirl’s Hawaiian Lei is succumbing to rust rot.

Rob’s June Bug is choked with algae and not producing plantlets yet.

Our F2 hybrid leaf is bleached out, choked with algae, and spotted with white mold.

Leaf Experiment Unsuccessful

At 60 days, we deem the experiment less than successful. We’ll transplant the growing African violet plantlets, and start the next batch of leaves with better air circulation and less intense light. Stay tuned…

The scraggly remains of the winter AeroGarden planting (from back): thyme going to seed, purple basil, Genovese basil. In front, a small catnip plant (for a friend’s kitty) and more basil.

The basil went into a batch of pesto, and the hydro unit will be readied for our next experiment: propagating African violets in the AeroGarden.

We’ve started herb and vegetable seeds in Jiffy plugs, about 10″ under lights on indoor plant stands. Lights are on approximately 16 hrs. a day. Every available sunny windowsill is in use, too, at this time of year.

Organic basil (8 varieties)

Left: catnip and cat grass (for friends’ kitties); Right: tomatoes

Commercial: grape tomatoes, cherry tomatoes
Organic: “Money Maker” (small tomatoes), Falcorosso F1 (plum tomatoes)

Baby bell peppers (seeds from last season’s AeroGarden crop)

More basil varieties, and some oregano

Sage, watercress, chives, dill, rosemary, marjoram

Resources:

• AeroGardens and accessories
• Jiffy peat pellets
• Herb seeds, tomato seeds, vegetable seeds and more

(click images to enlarge)

click photo to enlarge

This plant is a Burpee container plant that we have neglected to transplant into a hanging basket. Since the plant started flowering and developing strawberries so quickly we thought it best to leave it alone.

Strawberries grown in the house under lights do equally well as strawberry plants in windowsill containers.

Strawberry Seeds

Strawberries can be grown from seed indoors year-round if you provide warmth and light. Growing strawberries from seed is more challenging, but think of all the plants and strawberries you could produce! Nothing beats fresh, home-grown strawberries. You can find an assortment of strawberry seeds here.

Strawberry Pots & Planters

If you prefer to grow strawberries on the deck or patio a strawberry pot or planter is an attractive and efficient method. Here are some planters made just for growing strawberries:

• Strawberry Jars
• Strawberry Pots
• Strawberry Planters and Grow Bags

This successful grow project has been fun and rewarding. We’ve got lots of peppers ripening and more and more flowers opening and being pollinated at the top of the canopy. When the plants run their course we will consider growing grape tomatoes (or currant tomatoes) in the AeroGarden.

The peppers are delicious, by the way

click photos to enlarge

DAY 90:

See also…

• AeroGardens and accessories
• Liquid hydroponics nutrients
• Pepper seeds

There are many varieties of strawberries, and three specific production habits to choose from:

“June-bearing” strawberries – these plants produce strawberries early in the season yielding a harvest through June and July

“Ever-bearing” strawberry plants produce fruit three times throughout the season (spring, summer and fall)

“Day-neutral” – plants yield strawberries all year long

Since we will be growing strawberries indoors we wanted ever-bearing strawberries or day-neutral, and settled on two varieties known for their excellent flavor, color, and easy care:

• “Quinault” ever-bearing
• “Eversweet” (everbearing>

Although we’ve always wanted to grow strawberries in strawberry pots or jars they just aren’t as conducive to indoor growing as is planting strawberries in hanging baskets or, as you’ll see here soon, growing strawberries indoors in a windowbox.

Where to Buy Strawberry Plants

In spring you’ll find strawberry plants at indoor garden centers and sometimes in the garden department of home improvement stores. If you can’t find locally the types or varieties of strawberries you’re interested in growing you might want to order online. Reputable sources to buy strawberry plants online in-season are:

• Nature Hills Nursery
• Amazon.com (various vendors)

Where to Buy a Strawberry Planter

If you are an outdoor gardener or prefer to grow on a patio or deck, strawberries do very well in lots of different kinds of containers. Quick links to planters made just for growing strawberries:

• Strawberry Pots
• Strawberry Planters and Grow Bags
• Strawberry Jars