Best Plants to Grow Indoors

If you’re using grow lights and have the means to control the temperature and humidity, and if you have enough space, you can grow almost anything you desire. But these are some of the best and easiest edible plants to grow indoors.

Herbs

Herbs are easy to grow, as they don’t take up much space, can be harvested continuously for seasonings, and are most comfortable at room temperatures (65-75 degrees Fahrenheit). Some of the best indoor herbs include thyme, sage, chives, mint, basil, rosemary, bay laurel, oregano, chervil, and parsley. The best spot for your indoor herb garden is on a sunny kitchen windowsill if you have one. And if you splurge for some grow lights, you can grow pretty much any herb you like. Give them 12-16 hours of direct light per day, and they’ll thrive.

Leafy Greens

Leafy greens are also solid indoor gardening choices. Many greens are adapted to indoor growing, including loose-leaf lettuce varieties, baby spinach, arugula, and mesclun mix. Kale is a bit more of a challenge, as it does best in cooler temperatures, but you can definitely give it a try.

The easiest way to grow leafy greens is to harvest them as microgreens. It’s a bit more time-intensive since you’re harvesting them young and therefore have to replant frequently due to turnover, but the microgreens are typically extremely high in nutrients, delicious, and easy on resources like soil, water, and fertilizer. Some microgreens can give you multiple harvests from a single crop; just give them a haircut with a sharp pair of scissors, and they’ll grow back as long as you keep watering them and giving them sufficient light. Here’s a handy microgreen starter kit.

Sprouts

Sprouts don’t even require soil; you can sprout greens and other seeds on damp paper towels, or in jars with mesh lids. Here’s a whole article about how to grow sprouts indoors.

Vegetables

You can also grow many vegetables indoors, depending on space and light. Some of the most popular include tomatoes, chili peppers, potatoes, green onions, and carrots. Vegetables can be grown from seeds, seedlings, or even regrown from scraps. Note that you’ll likely need larger containers (at least 10-12″ wide and deep) for most vegetables, especially if you want to grow enough to feed your household.

Fruit Trees

Don’t forget lovely, fragrant, and hardy fruit trees. There are many dwarf varieties of lemon, peach, fig, and other fruit trees. If you like nursery rhymes, you might consider growing a mulberry bush in the middle of your family room.

If you have space and some large containers (2-5 gallons), you can grow delicious berries: blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries are common choices. And there are even varieties of grapes that can be.

(Excerpt from The Food Revolution Network)