Window Sill Gardens

Many people wish they could garden, but think they can’t because of where they live. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Container plants can grow on window sills and in sunny rooms without the addition of artificial light, assuming the area receives 6 to 8 hours of sunlight each day. Grow lights can also be used for even better growth. Growing edible plants serves many purposes: cleaner air, tastier food, less fossil fuels being burned, and, hey, container gardening is fun!

Many herbs can be grown on a window sill

Window sill garden resources

Start your window sill garden by figuring out what resources are available with these questions:

• How many windows are available?
• How many hours of sun does each window get?
• How wide/deep are the sills?
• Can hanging plants be installed near windows?
• What seeds and plants are available?

Choosing plants for your window sill gardens

The next step is deciding what to plant. Being grown indoors, many of these plants will need to be hand-pollinated, but it's not difficult.

• What will you actually eat or use?
• Herbs are excellent choices for window sill gardens. They don’t need much care and most of them are damn near indestructible, once established (except basil). Oregano makes a lovely hanging plant, chives will continue to produce for years, and thyme and rosemary are very fragrant. 
• Fresh tomatoes, melons, squash, and cucumbers taste divine and are surprisingly easy to grow, and they can be trained up a trellis, net, or a lovely dried branch. Hand-pollination* will be needed if grown indoors. 
• Climbing nasturtiums are edible and lovely!
• Potatoes and strawberries grow for many years in a tower, bucket or trash can. Strawberries can also be grown in hanging baskets.
• Citrus and other fruit trees can be grown from seeds in fruit already in the house. Just don’t try this with apples - their seeds will not produce trees identical to the parent tree.
• Blueberry, raspberry and blackberry bushes can grow in containers.
• Climbing (pole) beans can grow up a discarded net hung over a window.
• Radishes need very little space and they grow really fast. If radishes are grown in a bigger container and allowed to go to seed, hundreds of radish seed pods can be enjoyed raw or in salads and stir-fry.
• Ornamental plants, such as succulents and bulbs, are attractive choices and they require very little care.

Window sill garden containers

The next step is selecting container(s). This is an excellent time to go outside and start walking around the neighborhood. It is astounding what people will throw away these days. Very often, the perfect container can be found just by walking around with an open mind and mindful eyes. 

Just be sure to provide drainage for container plants. Over-watering and poor drainage kill more indoor plants than everything else put together. Contrary to popular belief, it is not a good idea to add rocks at the bottom of planting containers. Rocks take up valuable soil space and provide fungal spores with a great place to reproduce. Just be sure there are a couple of holes at the base of plant containers to allow water a way to escape. Place tuna cans, coffee canister lids or plastic packaging under plant containers to catch excess water. A few container possibilities include:

• Small ceramic pots, jumbo coffee mugs from local thrift stores or yard sales.
• Rain gutter scraps can be sealed and mounted on many window sills. Be sure to seal them with something non-toxic. The standard coating probably isn’t good to eat.
• Plastic bags, even old leather boots work as planting containers! Use your imagination!
• Pallets can be reconstructed into countless forms to suit different window sill garden needs. Check out these Instructables!

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WARNING: IF A CONTAINER IS GOING TO BE USED TO GROW EDIBLE PLANTS, BE SURE THE CONTAINER IS SAFE FOR FOOD. MANY PLASTICS AND CERAMIC GLAZES CAN BE TOXIC.

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Soil for window sill gardens

There are several sources for soil for container plants:

• You may be tempted to dig up soil from outside, but that’s risky. Dog, cat, and rat urine may be present, along with weed seeds, fungal spores, and other undesirable microorganisms. If ground-scored soil must be used, look for an area that is already home to healthy-looking plants.
• When buying soil, opt for potting soil over planting soil. Planting soil is formulated for use outside, while potting soil is for container planting. Potting soil holds moisture and nutrients better than planting soil.
• Another source for soil may be a local municipal solid waste company or the city itself. In an effort to reduce landfill needs, most municipalities now offer curbside collection of yard waste, which is then composted and returned to the community. The quality may be questionable because of those short-sighted individuals who toss plastic, diseased plants, and doggie-do bags in with the yard clippings, but most cities and companies sterilize the soil, making it a viable source for free or inexpensive soil.
• Container plants will use up nutrients in the soil, over time. Adding compost, fish emulsion, or new soil can keep container plants well fed.

Seeds & plants for window sill gardens

• Food can often be grown from food that’s already in the house. Potato eyes, celery, scallion, leek and onion ends, and bell pepper and tomatoes seeds can all be planted successfully.
• Some local libraries now offer seed libraries, where seeds for a window sill garden can be ‘checked out’. If not, you can start your own seed library!
• Local Master Gardeners can often help you find seeds for a window sill garden.
• Some plants can be started from cuttings and layering. Layering refers to the way plants, such as rosemary and the bramble berries, start roots at the end of a growing tip that has come into contact with the soil.

It’s time to plant!

Plants are more likely to grow to their full potential if they are planted according to the directions on the seed packet. If the information isn’t available, Google it!

* Hand-pollination

To get fruit from some plants, especially fruit trees, the flowers will need to be hand-pollinated. Just grab a small paint brush, Q-tip or something similar, and touch it to each of the flowers every couple of days until the flowers start to turn brown. This bee-ly duty will transfer pollen from one flower to another, completing the pollination cycle. Self-pollinating varieties don’t need this.

That’s all there is to it! The only thing stopping you from gardening now is, I have to say it, YOU!