How to Grow a Salad Indoors
How to Grow a Salad Indoors
It sounds like a dilemma. Maybe you’re stuck in the middle of an icy winter, or summer has rolled around and it’s just too darned hot to be outside, or you simply don’t have the time to tend an outside garden—but still, you long for the taste of fresh, delicious, homegrown greens. Here’s an ingenious solution: Grow your salad indoors in a water-based growing system (also known as a hydroponic system).
But wait, you’re thinking. Aren’t hydroponic systems complicated—and, well, kind of ugly and space-hogging? Not if it’s a Miracle-Gro® Twelve™ Indoor Growing System. This super easy-to-use unit looks like a sleek, modern end table, but the bottom level is set up to grow your favorite leafy greens or herbs. Not only does it make it simple to nurture your own indoor garden, but you’ll also get the healthy benefits of growing live plants indoors and an elegant piece of furniture that will set any visitor talking.
What to grow in your Miracle-Gro® Twelve™ Indoor Growing System:
To grow your own flavorful salad, choose four plants from among these types of greens:
- Arugula
- Kale
- Lettuce (like romaine, bibb, and mesclun mix)
- Swiss chard
You can also spice up your salad by growing any of these fresh herbs:
- Basil
- Cilantro
- Parsley
- Dill
- Sage
- Oregano
- Thyme
When you start with vigorous young Bonnie Plants®, your plants will already be well on the road to maturity—in fact, you may be able to begin harvesting in as little as two weeks (depending on what you’re growing). Plants will keep growing and producing for up to two months in the Miracle-Gro® Twelve™ system. Then, just replace them with new plants and keep on growing!
How to plant in your Miracle-Gro® Twelve™ Indoor Growing System:
First, set up your unit according to the instructions that come with it. Then, while you can grow seeds and other seedlings in the system, the fastest route to that tasty salad is to plant vigorous young starter plants from Bonnie Plants®.
Now it’s time to plant:
1. Remove plants from their pots and place in transplant liners.
2. Place the liners inside the large net cups.
3. Place the net cups in the unit.
4. Feed immediately by pouring one packet of Miracle-Gro® Twelve™ Plant Nutrition into the filled reservoir.
(Growing seeds instead? Follow the instructions that come with the unit.)
It’s Grow Time
Transplants will immediately start growing, thanks to the pump that continuously circulates water through the system to provide roots with moisture, air, and nutrients they need for plants to grow big. All the light your plants need comes from the specially designed grow light on the underside of the tabletop, and you can adjust the brightness by tapping the top of the shade or using the Miracle-Gro® Twelve™ app. Speaking of the app, it’s truly handy, connecting to the system with Bluetooth® wireless technology so you can set your growing schedule, change the lighting mode, monitor the water level, and manage your calendar all from your smartphone. When harvest time arrives, use kitchen scissors to snip the stems or leaves you need to fill your salad bowl.
Growing a salad in water—indoors, no less!—has never been easier or more fun. Once you start, you’re never going to want to settle for store-bought lettuce again.
