Indoor Gardening: How and What to Grow Indoors
Fall has arrived here in Stockholm, Sweden, and with that, my garden is ending. But that doesn’t mean I’ll stop growing food! We continue to grow food on our windowsills during the fall and winter months—yes, even in colder weather. If you don’t have access to a garden or balcony, you can still grow food on your windowsill. Many plants thrive in pots indoors as long as they get enough light. With the right techniques and plant choices, you, too, can enjoy a bountiful indoor harvest.
How to Grow Indoors
Sunny windows: If your window faces south or west, you can grow light-loving plants such as herbs, small tomatoes, or chilies.
Hydroponics: We grow lettuce using a hydroponic system, which has been gaining popularity for indoor growing. This method involves cultivating plants in water instead of soil. Hydroponic systems are perfect for indoor spaces and take up minimal room. If you’re tight on space but eager to grow food, hydroponics might be the ideal solution.

Grow lights: Plants need light to grow, so during winter months, when we do not have much sun, we use a grow light. Grow lights provide the necessary light spectrum for photosynthesis, promoting healthy plant growth. They also extend the growing season, allowing for year-round cultivation of crops.
Sprouting: Sprouting has got to be the easiest and cheapest way to grow food. All you need is a sprouting jar or bag and seeds. As a bonus, it is fast, and sprouts are superfoods.
How to Grow Sprouts

1. Start with clean, good-quality seeds or legumes such as alfalfa, mung beans, lentils, or broccoli.
2. To remove debris, cleanse the seeds thoroughly in a fine-mesh sieve or sprouting jar.
3. Place the rinsed seeds in a clean sprouting jar or a bowl. Add enough water to cover the seeds, and let them soak for 8-12 hours.
4. After soaking, drain the water from the seeds and rinse them again. Drain out any excess water.
5. Place the seeds in a sprouting jar or a bowl with good drainage. Cover the jar with a breathable cloth or mesh and secure it with a rubber band. This allows air circulation while keeping pests out.
6. Rinse and drain the seeds twice daily. Keep the sprouting seeds at room temperature, away from direct sunlight.
7. Depending on the type of seeds, sprouting can take a few days to a week. Once the sprouts have reached the desired length, please give them a final rinse and drain before consuming.
8. Enjoy your freshly sprouted seeds in salads, sandwiches, or as a nutritious garnish. Always use clean equipment and proper food safety practices during sprouting to prevent contamination.
How To Grow Microgreens
Microgreens—not to be confused with sprouts, which are germinated seeds of which you eat the root, seed, and shoots—are edible immature greens densely grown in soil or coconut coir and harvested less than a month after germination when the plants are up to two inches tall. Microgreens are incredibly nutritious. Amazingly, they’re packed with more nutrients than their full-grown counterparts! Our family loves growing arugula, leaf lettuce, broccoli, and radish microgreens.
Here is our video showing
Indoor Plant Care

Indoor plants need more care than outdoor plants, partly because they are not watered naturally. The indoor environment often causes plants to grow smaller. You might want to invest in a grow light for your plants in winter.
Here are some more tips:
- Make sure pots drain properly.
- Grow the vegetables in commercial planting soil or soil from their compost.
- Use pots, old plastic trays, and jars for the vegetables to grow.
- Plants need as much light as possible, so place them in a sunny part of your home.
- Give the plants regular nutrition, preferably at every watering.
- Put infested plants in “quarantine” so the pests can be combated.
- Harvest regularly, then sow new vegetation to always have fresh plants in progress.
Good Foods to Grow Indoors
Tomatoes: Tomatoes are beautiful plants because they are pretty and smell good. Who doesn’t love fresh tomatoes?! Although growing tomatoes inside is more challenging, it’s doable. Here is how to grow tomatoes indoors.
Herbs: Herbs are popular for growing indoors, and you can cultivate pretty much any herb—basil, parsley, dill, oregano, and many more.
Lettuce: Lettuce is pretty easy and fast to grow, and it’s an excellent food to propagate indoors because it adapts very quickly to temperature.
Garlic Chives: All you need to do is plant a couple of garlic cloves in a pot. The greens that grow from them are known as garlic chives or greens, and they are delicious. Simply harvest the greens, and more will grow.
By embracing indoor food cultivation, you can enjoy the satisfaction of growing your produce, even in limited space. Whether you opt for a sunny windowsill or explore hydroponic systems, there are plenty of options for bringing the joys of gardening indoors. Plus, you’ll have access to fresh, homegrown ingredients!
Learn more about growing food indoors and outdoors and how to live more self sufficient with my online and go at your own speed gardening class.