[Riala]

Is it possible to grow anything I want indoors?

Cherry toms, chilli's, herbs? I ask, because we have had hardly any sunshine at all, and it would make sense to me that growing indoors would work as long as they are in a window sill in a foil box.

Am I mad, or could this actually work with anything? My windowsill's in the kitchen are really wide, and I can easily fit 6 or 7 seed trays on there, so a couple of small troughs would fit perfectly!

[Cazzy]

I grew chilis and sweet peppers on the window ledge, the chilis are as good as the ones in the greenhouse but the peppers were really small.

[HLS]

I grow chillis inside but haven't had wonderful yields so I'm probably not the best person to ask.  I think my success rate is probably more to do with the fact that I keep forgetting to feed them than the fact that they're indoors, though!  One thing I have noticed (common sense really) is that you really do need a lot of light (some windowsills are darker than you think they are) but that plants scorch very easily behind glass, so keep an eye on how they're doing and move them if necessary, and be extra careful when watering!

[JayG]

Most food plants we grow in Britain are not native to this country. For this reason, some are going to be marginal successes outdoors in a bad summer (ha!), and some are pretty marginal even in a good summer (does depend on where you live in Britain, of course)

For me, lacking a greenhouse, a good sunny indoor windowsill is the best place to grow chillis, peppers, aubergines and very soft annual herbs like basil. Very compact tomato varieties also work but you do have to bear in mind how big and obtrusive the plants may get if you (and they) get carried away (my spare bedroom upstairs is now almost blacked out by 2 rampant cayennne chilli plants on the windowsill!)

[janet12000]

I have grown some lovely peppers on the kitchen window ledge.
I also took some scotch bonnet pepper plants to work, and they are flourishing on top of the filing cabinet in the office.  (sunny position)
Its a bit late to be starting stuff now though isn't it? I don't really know though. 

[tam]

My toms and peppers were all started indoors and had fruit developing before I put them outside. I only stuck um out to give me more space

[Riala]

Its a bit late to be starting stuff now though isn't it? I don't really know though. 

This is exactly why I am asking.  I do not see what difference it makes on the time of year when growing indoors.

[DD.]

Daylight.

Length of.

[Riala]

Daylight bulb.

[DD.]

Not as simple as two words.

http://www.gardenzine.co.uk/plants-under-lights.html

[Swing Swang]

A daylight bulb may give you the same quality of light as sunlight but it won't give you the same quantity so you'll need a lot of them. It's one of the reasons why the indoor growers of illegal plants use a lot of energy and their houses' heat signatures are picked up by police IR cameras.

Before you add supplementary lighting, your house after dark it is probably illuminated to about 200-300 lux, whereas it's closer to 10,000lux on a sunny day outside.

You'll be able to grow with artificial light, but in anything other than small quantities or with plants suited to life indoors/reduced daylight you might find it gets a bit expensive.

Regards,

SS

[tam]

My sweet pepper were sown mid Nov last year with the aid of an LED bulb (£15), once they got fairly big I moved them to a window sill. I've had three crops off them starting with mid Feb. Between the two plants there has been an almost continuous supply.

The electricity used by the LED is pretty small and I've started off loads under it. Toms/aubergines/Melon in Jan/Feb. It seems to be just enough to get them past the stage where they could become leggy seedlings until they have a couple of leaves to collect the sun they need to grow normally.

Now might actually be a good time to start as there is still a bit of sun about to cover the seedling stage. Well presuming the sun comes out again instead of it tipping it down.

[Riala]

DD gave me a 3 word answer, and I replied with two.. that's all.

I have a daylight bulb and heat bulb in the Terrapin tank that is uncovered, so there is 'daylight' from midday till 10pm in the dining room with the largest windowsill.

I was just curious to the reason's behind seasonal growing when it is indoors... I just wondered if it still applied.

[Yorkie]

I start things off indoors in late spring, for planting out after the frosts have gone.  The amount of light coming in through the windows at that time of year is so weak that the plants go leggy in the search for more light.

Far better to start them off later and/or outdoors, when the daylight conditions are more suitable.

[Riala]

I realise that for later planting... that is not my query.

I wondered if it was possible to grow 'anything' indoors completely, no matter what time of year it is.