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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

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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
• Burpee.com
• 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

Since the seeds came from market-bought peppers, we don’t know the growth habit of the plants: how tall they will grow, whether they will need to be pruned, staked or tied, or if they will produce peppers all season long, all year long, or all at once. What we do know, for sure, is that they are self-pollinating.

Who knew growing vegetables indoors could be so much fun?

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DAY 60:

Two months after planting seeds…	…we’ve got a good crop growing!
Many are the size of jalapenos…
Color should be developing soon

» Click to see the first AeroGarden bell pepper crop «

See also…

• AeroGarden indoor units and accessories
• Liquid hydroponic nutrients
• Pepper seeds

Before ordering an AeroGarden we started saving seeds from tomatoes (cherry and grape) and bell peppers. Some particularly delicious miniature bell peppers yielded a good crop of seeds, so they are the first seeds to be sown in the new AeroGarden PRO200.

Red, orange, and yellow baby bell pepper seeds were sown midday immediately after unpacking the AeroGarden. Seeds sprouted on the 5th day – earlier than anticipated. Bumper crop on the way…scroll down for the latest photos.

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DAY 1:

Not much to see here yet…

DAY 5:

DAY 6:

DAY 28:

Baby bell peppers at 28 days. A garlic plant grows in a pot to the left, and thunbergia seedlings (black-eyed susan vine) are in plugs to the right. A minimum-maximum hygrometer/thermometer monitors the humidity and temperature.

DAY 31:

31 Days into the growth cycle – flower buds are forming

Buds on AeroGarden pepper plants

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DAY 40:

The first flowers began to open around 40 days after planting.

DAY 48:

The first mini baby bell pepper!

See how the pepper plants look at 60 days…click here!

See also…

• AeroGarden indoor units and accessories
• Liquid hydroponic nutrients
• Pepper seeds

The AeroGarden Pro200 is sleek and attractive, runs quietly, and took about 10 minutes to unbox and set up.

AeroGrow (the company that makes the AeroGarden line of products) recently dropped the prices on all the AeroGarden models, and with free shipping this purchase was a great deal. Plus, the unit arrived with two freebies that we weren’t expecting:

• The AeroGarden Herb ‘n Serve – a very cool, battery-operated salad dressing and marinade maker. Works like a small blender, just add fresh herbs, oil and vinegar, blend and serve. Comes with a booklet full of recipes for dressings made with your freshly grown AeroGarden crops
• Herb it up! – a 2-inch thick binder full of recipes, tips and techniques for using your AeroGarden herbs, organized by cuisine (Tuscan Italian, Mediterranean, South of the Border etc.) and by food type (Poultry, Seafood, Beef & Pork, Pasta & Rice etc.)

Neither of these items was advertised as bonus gifts when we placed the order, so it was a really nice surprise to find them when the box was opened.

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Everything that came in the box: AeroGarden PRO200 unit, Herb ‘n Serve, Recipe book, and Aerogarden catalog

Herb ‘n Serve Salad Dressing & Marinade Maker

Herb it Up! Fresh Herb Cooking for Everyone recipe book

Opening the AeroGarden Pro200 box, we find everything well organized and tightly packed for shipping:

• The AeroGarden unit: base, bowl, lamp arm, hood
• three grow light bulbs
• the Master Gardener Kit (to sow your own seeds)
• a Gourmet Herb kit (pre-seeded pods)
• a quick-start guide to setting up the unit

Once everything was out of the box, set up was very quick: Insert the bulbs, assemble the unit, fill it with water, add seeds to the pods and label them, choose the grow setting, drop in the nutrients, and done. The only thing left to do is to set the timer for the lamp at the time you want the lights to go off.

A note about labeling the pods: The set-up guide says to use a dry iron to affix labels to the grow pods. Instead, we used used a little bit of white glue on the rims of the plastic pod baskets. The glue is standing up to plant growth and humidity just fine.

Grow lights inserted into the hood	Unit assembled
Master Gardener kit	Pods inserted
Lights on, and we’re all set to go	Companion plants for the AeroGarden

Other plants will love sitting next to your AeroGarden unit. African violets, in particular, make great companion plants for your AeroGarden.

Read about the seeds planted for the first AeroGarden project, and watch them grow…

click to read about the baby bell peppers…

You may be interested in:

• AeroGardens and accessories
• pH Kits and Hydroponic Nutrients