I recently visited my Grandmother's flat and the series of potted plants on the window sill were just delightful. One, she said that wouldn't grow for years, had finally started producing vines climbing up the rope on the blinds. Do any of you guys here grow plants in your spare time? Seems like such a peaceful hobby.

Man I wish I could. If I had my own place with a yard. That's my dream, getting some land in the mountains and spend my days harvesting opium.

>>2
Maybe you could get some window boxes like OP's grandma.
When I lived in an apartment many years ago, we grew tomatoes and peppers in a couple of window boxes.

>>3
Would work in theory but I only have one window and the roof hangs over it so there isn't much sunlight at all coming through it.

>>4
There are plants that prefer indirect sunlight. Keep that in mind.

There's a small patch that I used to garden back home, but while I am at college it isn't taken care of and the plants suffer so I stopped planting things. I'm hoping this summer to grow something like roses when I can actually care for them.

>>6
I'm a uni student who used to garden a tiny patch like you; I find keeping a rainforest's worth of houseplants inside my room helps. People always seem to like them too which is nice - when I was in halls the cleaning staff even came around to knock on my door and chat about gardening!

I have a row of big leafy plants by the window in my room and they make me so happy whenever I come home!

I have two basil plants I got from the Wikipedia store that make my room smell great.

It's almost time to plant vegetable gardens! We usually have tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, and cucumbers. We've tried corn in the past, but it didn't work out all that great.

>>10
I've been gifted some giant pumpkin seeds (Dill's Atlantic), so I'm hoping for a lot of pumpkin soup this fall!

What sort of peppers do you grow? My attempts there have ended in aphids and disappointment.

>>11
Jalapeños usually.
I don't think I've ever had pumpkin soup. Pumpkin pie is great though, and you can roast the seeds to make a tasty snack. Depending on how "giant" your pumpkins end up, you could have some great Jack'o'lanterns.

>>12
Hmm, I'll give them a go next year then - thanks for the recommendation.
It's nice, usually end up making it just after halloween when pumpkins are cheap in store. It's a lot like butternut squash soup (one of my favourites). I've never tried roasting pumpkin seeds though; are they like sunflower seeds?
And yes, the neighbourhood shall quiver in fear at the mighty pumpkin!

>>13
I love butternut squash, but again, I don't think I've ever had it in soup. I bet that would be a really smooth-textured soup.
Yeah, pumpkin seeds are kind of like sunflower seeds. They're crunchier and more like seeds but less like nuts, if that makes any sense.

I've been growing some tomato plants on my windowsill. I forgot the smell they make when they're moved or touched; one of my favorite in the garden!

>>15
I love the smell of tomatoes. It smells like summer.

I bought one of those living herb pots of basil and have re-potted it, does anyone have any recommendations for helping it last? It sits on my windowsill at the moment.

Gonna start truly gardening when I graduate and can actually place things outdoors.

For now, I'm happy with a few succulents. They look so cool and are easy to take care of.

>>17
You're off to a good start! The only thing I can say is to make sure it's draining well and don't overwater it; they're a dry-conditions plant despite the appearance, so just water when the soil is dry to the touch.

I live in an apartment so there isn't much space to grow plants, even though I really want to. Any tips on plants that I could grow in my bedroom? Preferably one that could serve as a decoration, too.

I'm not sure if this is truly gardening but I've been making a pavilion where the roof is made out of tree branches. To be able to guide the branches I made 2 square wooden beams where I attached some lines on. The tree is still fairly young (4 years)so I also intend to do "walls" on one side. In the end I hope to put a table and a few chairs under it for some comfy times.

>>20
There's a bunch, so it'll be useful to have a little more detail; does the room receive direct sunlight, bright diffused light, or little light? Estimate of dry vs humid conditions?

A peace lily (Spathiphyllum floribundum) is a classic recommendation, easy to find in stores and fairly easy to keep alive. Prefers shady/indirect sunlight and moist-ish soil.

Spider plants (Chlorophytum) do well in direct sunlight (they actually need it to maintain their coloring, like most variegated plants) and are easy to replicate off of the spiderlets.

Pothos (Epipremnum aureum) does well in shady/diffuse lighting and grows, uh, profusely. It's a trailing vine so I use it to cover the edges of bookcases and such - it'll keep growing out until whenever you cut the end of a vine.

>>21
That's cool, like a living canopy?

>>21
That sounds wonderful. What kind of tree is it?

>>22
It receives diffused light and it's pretty dry. Thanks for the tips, I'm going to look for a peace lily or a Pothos.

I tried during the previous gardening thread. I even ordered the seeds and everything but nothing really took and since it was too close to winter I put it off and never picked it up again. It seems nice but I guess I don't really have a green thumb.

I tried during the previous gardening thread. I even ordered the seeds and everything but nothing really took and since it was too close to winter I put it off and never picked it up again. It seems nice but I guess I don't really have a green thumb.

I killed a cactus by not watering it enough. Trying again with an orchid. My ambition is to eventually be able to maintain a herb garden.

>>27

I killed a cactus by not watering it enough.

I didn't even know that was possible. I have some really small cactus (±7cm height), how often should I water them?

>>28
'bout once a week depending on season, just make sure the soil dries down to ~2-3cm between so they don't get waterlogged.

>>28,29
Also, put sand or perlite or something in the soil medium, like 50%+, to make sure it drains well. Many cacti are nearly impossible to underwater to the point of actually dying but easy to overwater and stunt/damage roots.

>>30
Thanks for the tips! I guess I won't be killing any cacti for a while.

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>>31
I think I just killed a cactus with this ascii fail

>>33
Yes. VIP quality!

>>33
Did you use regular space or alt + 255?

>>35
just copied from an online Ascij repository, check the post preview to see which one works!

Anything growing this season?

Still nothing outside here, but a few cuttings taken to replace houseplants after the Great Christmas Holiday Drought (pothos and peperomioides as they grow really fast). I want to give a simple hydro setup a go this winter, but it still seems to be a challenge to track down appropriate light fittings in the UK...

My sweet mint I've planted last year died, and I don't know why. Melissa shrunk down to just several branches. But peppermint has spread out wildly, almost out of control, I daresay.

>>38
Sorry about your sweet mint. Is Melissa also some kind of mint?
Yeah, peppermint is super aggressive. I've heard you should always keep it in pots, even outside, to keep it from spreading and taking over your garden. I have a couple pots of it that I like to dry and make mint tea.

>>39
I once kept a mint plant in a pot, but when I went to pick it up it turned out it had grown roots right through the drainage holes and made its escape to the soil!

There was a nursery (or a greenhouse or whatever you call it, a place that sells plants) near me but it either closed down or moved. We were supposed to get a couple cherry trees from there. They were there for at least 20 years, but they just disappeared. They were also the only nursery around for who knows how far...

Growing tomatoes for the first time. That feel when you wake up and find first sprouts. :DDDDDD

This is an indoor project, but I'll keep eyes out for pests anyway.

>>42
Nice one! Yeah, still need to keep an eye out for pests inside - you'll be most likely to get "greenhouse issues" like spider mites or whitefly.

>>42
Tomatoes are surprising.
I received some seeds as gifts without any gardening experience before. Those things just grew out of nowhere super fast and tall.
Fun experience.

I really want to take up gardening now that I have some space. Any recommendations for a complete beginner to try growing?

>>45
What USDA zone are you in? You can find maps for the world showing them, and it's useful to give an idea of what you can grow in your climate.

For temperate climates tomatoes, potatoes, and peas (beans in general really) are easy annual crops. In slightly warmer temperate climates chilli varieties are very productive, and easy to dry out to keep throughout winter. Strawberries are perennial (they persist between years) which is neat, although they reduce yields following the third year and it can be a challenge to keep birds off of them. One of the most satisfying ways to get a garden started is to plant out lots of woody-stemmed herbs like thyme, rosemary, mint (PLANT IN A CONTAINER), and lavender - you can harvest them instantly and they're both drought and disease resistant. Salad plants (including "perpetual spinach", not actually a spinach) are great for the same reason, although typically annual - you can just harvest it as it grows throughout the season.

It's always good to try something regardless though. Do you have a favourite fruit/veg, or an interest in a weird heirloom variety? Even if it seems strange or difficult you never know how well it'll do!

>>22
Yes, it has been progressing quite well.
>>23
Bougainvillea

I don't get outside too often. Would LED lights be a suitable replacement for indoor planting?

Currently growing Raspberries, currant and Tomatoes in my Garden, I might show pictures later today.
I already picked all of the currant and a coworker made pie out of them.
Next year I want to try some beans on top of these. The raspberries are self sustaining meaning I don't even sow them, they just regrow here and there every year. Also had some wild strawberries but they didn't taste like anything so I threw them away after picking a big bowl :(

>>49
I took a cutting of a currant bush earlier this year and it started growing nicely, without any berries yet, it's still a tiny tree.Maybe I'll make it into a bonsai. I love the red currant berries I can't help but pluck a few every time I walk past the bush.

Used to pluck buckets of them at my grandpa's old allotment, sadly those times are long gone.

I had a money tree almost die that I brought back to life recently. It was a gift which makes me love it more.

>>48

Ultra Violet lights are what you want. I've seen small ones powered by USB for desk plants.

>>48
It's definitely doable; I've got a bunch of seedlings growing underneath a homebuilt 100W LED system. They need a lot of light to do well, so you need both a bright light and position it close to the top of the plant.

There's no need for UV lamps as photosynthesis primarily occurs in the visible band, and those red/blue "grow lamps" aren't the best -- chlorophyll-b and chlorophyll-c both absorb green light.
Broadly speaking, warm-white lighting is used to stimulate flowering/fruiting (as it's the colour of sunlight in late summer), and cool-white lighting to stimulate leafy growth.

https://extension2.missouri.edu/g6515

The Cornell CEA Hydroponic Lettuce Handbook is a good read if you're keen to do the calculations for lighting systems.

I wouldn't mind to grow something, but I literally live in darkness. I might be able to try to do so somewhere out in the yard come Spring.

I kept a cactus for a long time, through all of college, while I was staying at my parents house. It was a tiny little thing that I figured was only barely hanging on, but I at least tried to make sure it was watered and so on. After I moved out after graduation I left it there and my Mom tried to find time to take care of it every so often. Apparently it got in pretty bad shape so my brother took it off her hands and repotted it.
I figured it was long since dead after I moved out. But last I visited around the holidays I saw it at his place and didn't even recognize it, it had gotten about twice as tall and had new growth!
I was pretty happy to see it was still kicking, as funny as is it to care that much about a cactus, I think I'd have been a little sad to know it had just dried up and died.

>>55
They sell these tiny two-dollar cacti here. They're hardy, and sometimes they blossom.

I grew a bunch of Thai Chili plants this year as I wanted to be able to add spice of my own efforts to my cooking (unfortunately I'm in a bad depressive state and haven't cooked extensively enough to make use of them)

I started seeds in small beds just to see how they ended up. Most plants in the beds grew to about 7 inches in height. I found that the root systems needed to be deep and sprawling in order for the plants to grow well so I moved some of them to their own 5 gallon buckets (fuck yes cheap home depot buckets).

The two that I transplanted IMMEDIATELY took off and in the span of 3 weeks went from 7 inches to about two feet or so and they both produced a ton of peppers. They were also gorgeous when they bloomed, with small white flowers everywhere.

I plucked the peppers when they were a deep red and dried them out by hanging them from a string in my kitchen. They now sit in a corked jar in my cupboard and I grind them up with a coffee grinder to add to soups/rice dishes.

I'm definitely growing more this year. It made me happy to see them grow every day.

the tallest trees in the world are evergreens, and the california redwood (sequoia sempervirens) holds the record for being the tallest evergreen. these trees are known to grow up to 380 feet (120 meters) in height and are capable of living for at least 2,000 years.

these trees are not to climb. in fact, in most US states, it is illegal to climb a california redwood. but i'd imagine you would be able to get a very nice, scenic view of your surroundings if you were to sit at the top of one.

I wish I could grow weed without getting caught.

>>59
depending on where you live, some types of plants that are legal to grow can be used as hallucinogens.
https://erowid.org/plants/
https://erowid.org/plants/plants_journal1.shtml

>>60
Thanks for the links. But currently where I live I couldn't really grow much. Besides I don't have any privacy throughout my yard. There would be the possiblity I could grow something in the shed provided I could save up for equipment. But I don't know. Might just wait until I move next year. Probably will be moving at some point either late this year or Spring 2021.

>>60
Hawaiin baby woodrose is a delightful flower! Not to mention one of my favorite psychedlics. The internet will tell you this doesn't work but if you crush the seeds up and put them on some marijuana they can be smoked for the effects! The traditional route of just eating them causes real bad nausea and it can be worked around but its a lot of effort.