Growing Indoor Vegetables in Containers. Need advice.

Discussion in 'Fruit and Vegetable Gardening' started by Adam B, Jan 12, 2009.

  1. The Hollyberry Lady

    The Hollyberry Lady New Member

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    Yes, JanR's idea is excellent! Provided it's not too cold there - that could really work out for you!

    : )
     
  2. OGS

    OGS Member

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    Right now the temperature is 39 F. I can't bring myself to throwing them out. They are like my babies now. I need to make every effort to save them and if they die at the end I won't fret over it because I tried. I need to learn more about pollination, though. Gardening is starting to seem more like a science now! How many plants need to be near each other in order to pollinate and is there a rule of thumb as to how far apart each different plant should be from one another. Can a tomato pot be near a jalapeno pot for example when they're indoors?

    Oralia S.
     
  3. JanR

    JanR Active Member

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    Tomatoes can be near peppers, no problem. If you have a warm protected spot, try and put them outside for an hour or so each day to harden them off. You can gradually increase the time. You don't usually have to worry about pollinators on vegetables, as most are self pollinating. They just need to be out where bugs nd bees can get to them.
     
  4. The Hollyberry Lady

    The Hollyberry Lady New Member

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    Not true, about all veggies not needing to be pollinated! You will never see a single fruit, on an eggplant, cucumber, zucchini, melon, and many others, if no pollination takes place!

    Peppers and tomatoes are self pollinating, so you will still get fruits, and it doesn't matter how far away the plants are from each other. Although, when growing sweet and hot peppers together - keep them away from each other outside, because the bees will mix the pollen, and your sweet peppers may end up a bit hot! Inside though, this is not a problem.

    Inside, it makes no difference how far apart any of your veggie plants are from each other - so don't worry about that.

    As for hand pollinating - you must take pollen from one blossom and bring it to another blossom. I did a lot of research on it, before attempting it though. It's not always easy, and you may not be successful the 1st time you try! It took me awhile to get the hang of it. Practice is the best teacher though.

    Hope you are feeling confident about all of this, and are not confused by conflicting information. I have been growing veggies indoors for nearly 6 years now - so I have a lot of experience with them.
    Ultimately, it is always better to grow friuts and veggies outside, but they can be grown with much success inside too, if the right environment is provided for them.

    JanR's idea about putting them out for a bit each day, is really a good one, and will help the plants make an easier adjustment, to outdoor conditions.

    What have you got to lose? It will be fun trying, and you'll learn a lot too. Anymore questions or concerns, feel free to ask...
     
  5. JanR

    JanR Active Member

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    I didn't say that they didn't need to be pollinated, just that they don't need a pollinator. You can have one melon or one zucchini for instance and you will have male and female flowers on each plant, so they are self-pollinating. You will get fruit with only one plant.
     
  6. The Hollyberry Lady

    The Hollyberry Lady New Member

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    Your information is very misleading JanR, and quite confusing actually. Melons, zucchini, and squash are not self-pollinating! If someone or something, doesn't move the pollen into the other blossoms, there will be no fruits!

    I was just trying to tell OGS, how to get some fruits indoors, with no birds or bees to pollinate the blossoms...
     
  7. OGS

    OGS Member

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    All of the cucumber and melon seedlings have two good leaves and a baby leaf starting. They are by a large East window (although not directly in front) since I don't want them to feel any chill and I am hoping that by not giving them too much sun I could stunt their growth just a bit so they could hold out until May. This last weekend the sun was out and the weather was in the high 50s so I took them out for a few hours. They really didn't like it since a few of them wilted. The tomato and jalapeno seedlings look a little sad too. I am hoping they fully revive this week by keeping them indoors. The weather now is cloudy. Should I place them under kitchen lights or is there special lights I should be buying? and should I wait until the weather is in the 60s before hardening them? If I see blossoms before may I will check back with this thread. Until then I will not worry about pollination. Meanwhile I will be researching this topic at the library since it seems to be very important to fruit production.
     
  8. The Hollyberry Lady

    The Hollyberry Lady New Member

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    Kitchen lights won't have much effect, unfortunately! I use florescents for my seedlings, and I also have a 400 W metal halide HID system, to compensate for those dark winter days.

    If you have a south window, it would be better than your east one, so the plants can get some afternoon sunshine too. If the windows are closed, I wouldn't worry about putting them too close - they should be ok. Your biggest concern right now, is light.

    Yes, I would wait until it gets a bit warmer outside in your area then, before trying to put them out. Probably a bit too cool outside yet for them, and that's why they wilted on ya.

    Great, that you're researching pollination - you will be just fine with all of this, don't worry.

    : )
     

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