How to grow your own indoors

Vegetables bring so much to the table. They are versatile, tasty, nutritious, and add plenty of colour to our dishes. But when you’ve finished cooking with them, there may be leftover scraps. You might be surprised to know you can re-grow more veg from these pieces.

Not only will this save you money but it’s fascinating to watch the process of regeneration and regrowth.

How to grow celery indoors

Celery is an easy and popular one to regrow. All that’s needed is to cut the bottom of the celery off. Then place it in a shallow container with some lukewarm water in the bottom, so the base is submerged.

Position the container in a sunny, warm spot and the celery will happily re-grow. In about a week as leaves begin growing, they can be cut off as needed. Alternatively, the celery can be replanted in a small container of soil rather than water. Just use a peat-free compost and placing in full sun and water regularly.

How to grow onions indoors

Although there are many vegetables that can be re-grown in water, onions tend to do better when regrown in soil. Cut the onion bottoms at the root end so it’s approximately 1 inch thick.

The onions can then be placed with the roots facing downwards into a container filled with moist peat-free compost. Add a small layer of soil on top and keep the compost moist but not wet. Within a few weeks roots will have grown and there will be green shoots growing.

How to grow spring onions indoors

The green shoots can be cut and used in dishes like spring onions. However, if you are looking to grow larger onions, keep the greens in place.

Then they can give the bulb plenty of nutrition to grow. The onions will need to be transplanted into larger pots or into the ground so they can continue to grow.

In the UK, you would be forgiven for thinking you’d never be able to pick a lemon or orange straight from the tree. But citrus fruits can be grown indoors through the colder months and outside during the summer.

These trees are incredibly rewarding to grow, because not only do you get the delicious fruits. But also, the trees themselves look fantastic with glossy evergreen foliage and beautiful fragrant flowers.

Some citrus trees are self-fertile, so a single plant can produce fruit without a pollinating partner, so it’s a win-win. Planting these trees in pots is best because it allows flexibility with their positioning to move them indoors and outdoors. When picking a pot, terracotta is great because it is difficult to overwater as they lose moisture quickly. One thing to bear in mind when growing citrus trees is that they need well-drained soil. Because waterlogged soil is risky and can lead to the plant’s death.

They grow best in locations with high humidity, so when they’re indoors a conservatory or kitchen is ideal. Centrally heated rooms are not ideal for citrus as they are generally too hot and lack humidity. For this reason, when they are indoors over autumn and winter, steer clear of positioning them near a radiator. This is because the dry heat will lead to the leaves dropping.

Through summer, water orange, lemon, and kumquats once a week, preferably with rainwater. And feed them weekly too with liquid seaweed and a specialist citrus feed. When it’s warmer outside, the orange or lemon tree can be taken outdoors and put into the sunniest spot possible. It’s ideal to keep some horticultural fleece handy too. This will help if there is a chill because it’ll be at risk if there are any late frosts.

Herbs are a useful harvest to have around when it comes to enhancing the taste of your cooking at home. And some can be conveniently grown on the kitchen windowsill.

How to grow basil indoors

Basil is perfect for use in soups, salads, and sandwiches to give a boost of Italian flavour. They can be grown from seed by sowing thinly in small pots of peat-free all-purpose compost. There they will germinate in as little as 2 weeks.

On the other hand, small basil plants can be bought from the local garden centre and positioned on the kitchen windowsill. To grow the best herbs indoors, the trick is to keep them cooler and crop them regularly to encourage growth.

How to grow parsley indoors

Like basil, parsley can be grown from see or from small plants. It’s a lovely looking herb, with detailed, crinkled leaves that are deep emerald in colour. Sowing regularly will give you a successional harvest of leaves that will pack a punch with flavours and nutrition.

When sowing indoors, place the seeds 0.5cm deep into small pots of peat-free all-purpose compost. Regularly water well and keep in a warm, bright position. Within a month, the seeds will have germinated, and you’ll be well on your way to having harvests of herbs.

As with outdoor crops, the herbs grown indoors will benefit from liquid feed to nurture further growth. This energy will be put into fresh foliage going, which means more and more harvests at your fingertips.

How to grow cress and mung beans indoors

Add more variety to your kitchen windowsill by growing cress and mung beans. Grow these in jars by soaking the beans in water, draining them and leaving them to sprout in a dry jar. Cress can be sown in compost, on moist kitchen roll or cotton wool.

Then place in pretty much any type of container at any time of year. Sow generously, water well and place in warm, light position, away from cold draughts and out of intense, direct sunlight. Always keep the growing medium moist, then seedlings should start to appear within a few days.