Greenthumb
Indoor options keep students ‘alive’
By KIRSTEN TATE
UNIVERSITY JOURNAL
One of the most telling signs of spring is people preparing
their gardens for the coming season of flowers, herbs
and vegetables of all kinds.
For most students, though, planting an outdoor garden
is not an option because they live in an apartment or
rented house that doesn’t allow them to create gardens
of their own.
All hope is not lost. There are opportunities to bring
color and greenery inside. Small gardens can be grown
indoor with simple techniques and little cost.
Flowers such as begonias and impatiens are colorful flowers
that can be grown easily inside because they can survive
without direct sunlight. Begonias need between 14 to 16
hours of light per day, The Complete Book of Houseplants
Under Lights reported.
Both types of flowers can grow up to 18 inches, said Ray
Ballard, owner of Ballard’s Nursery in Hurricane.
They can be easily trimmed into whatever space is available.
Growing herbs like parsley, dwarf basil and thyme are
easy to keep alive in a sunny window, and they also produce
food, Ballard said.
To begin a garden, it’s possible to start from seeds
or from small plants already growing.
Ballard said the larger the pot is, the more chance the
plant has of staying alive. Materials required include
a pot for each separate plant, a small bag of potting
soil, and a water-soluble fertilizer.
At Ballard’s Nursery, most herbs can be purchased
for 79 cents for three herbs. A six pack of tomatoes is
available for 99 cents. Bedding plants, like begonias
and impatiens, cost 99 cents for six plants.
Hydroponics is another garden alternative that is growing
in popularity. It is the technique of
growing plants without soil. There are two different options
for growing plants hydroponically.
According to World Book Encyclopedia, first is the “water
culture.” The plants are suspended with their roots
in a tank of water.
Second, is the “aggregate culture,” where
the roots are placed in coarse sand, gravel or peat moss,
that acts as an anchor for the roots.
In any indoor growing condition, extra light is needed,
preferably a florescent light, because flowering plants
and vegetables are controlled by the length of light and
dark periods, said Ron Martin, associate professor of
biology.
He said there is a wide variety of plants and vegetables
that grow well hydroponically.
“All of the flowers planted on campus are grown
in the greenhouse, and everything in the greenhouse is
grown that way,” Martin said.
In order to grow plants in this manner, the temperature
must be maintained, depending on whether the plant is
a warm-season crop or cool-season crop. Warm-season crops
do well between 60 and 75 degrees Fahrenheit. Cool season
crops grow best between 50 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit,
according to an
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Jim Crouch, biology technician and plant science
lecturer, replants cacti in the Sharwan Smith Center.
Crouch also teaches a greenhouse practicum class that
requires students to care for plants in the college
greenhouse.
ANNE McCONNELL/ UNIVERSITY JOURNAL
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information packet Martin compiled for students. Oxygen
must be present at the roots or the plant can’t grow.
In systems grown with water, an air pump is often needed
to bubble air through to the roots.
In order to get the required nutrients, the plants need
to be watered with a water-soluble plant food, not merely
a fertilizer, Martin said.
Materials required include a tank or container that is water
tight so the nutrient solution doesn’t leak out; metal,
earthen or glass containers such as flower pots, baskets
and wooden boxes can be used for small gardens.
The ground material is preferably a coarse-textured sand
that doesn’t contain lime. Mixing sand and gravel
is another option that works well. Other materials like
peat moss and wood shavings grow plants as well, according
to the packet.
Feeding the plants with the nutrient solution is simple.
Students can pour it over the plants by hand. The nutrient
material has to be added and drained in the tank once or
twice a day, depending on the dryness of the roots. Drenching
them won’t cause any harm, but drying them out will,
the packet said.
The chosen method of growing a garden depends on the amount
of space available, the amount of light present and which
plants are most desirable. People should consider what they
want to get out of their garden, and which type will work
best for their environment, according to Hydroponics, a
catalogue and price list of various hydroponic equipment.
Ballard said information about the various plants and what
each plant requires is available at any nursery. |
