How To Grow A Basement Garden

A basement is often a blank space in a home with a whole host of possibilities. When you start thinking of uses for basement, you’ll find options that range from a game room or man cave to other less conventional ideas. One option to consider is a basement garden.

Basement gardens are a unique way of using your space to grow fruits and vegetables and are gaining popularity with those who want a DIY project that is also eco-friendly. Basement gardens consist of plants grown in raised platform using topsoil, indoor lighting, and often hydroponic watering systems. These types of gardens can vary widely depending on your basement, but there are some things to keep in mind for any style you plan on implementing. Here are some tips and things to remember when starting your basement garden.

Preparing Your Basement

Make sure your basement is warm and properly ventilated. Just like in any other garden, your plants need warmth and proper amounts of oxygen to grow properly.

What to Grow

Understand that not every plant will grow as well in your basement. Some plants require more sunlight than others and this can be hard to recreate in a basement.

The best plants to grow in a basement garden include lettuce, spinach, radishes, and Swiss chard. Different plants will not grow well in basement gardens for different reasons. Plants like tomatoes and peppers require more heat and light to grow while bush beans and peas need less heat. Bottom line is choose what to plant carefully.

How To Maintain Your Garden

After picking which plants you want to grow, you need to set up your garden so your plants will grow in the best possible conditions.

Sunlight

You’ll need to use artificial light to make sure your plants get enough “sunlight” in your basement to grow successfully. Put your lights on a timer so your plants get a minimum of 8 hours of light per day. Keep in mind that some plants require 10 hours of sunlight or more, so adjust according to your plants’ needs.

TIP: Increase lighting hours and watering once your plants have fruited.

Watering

NEVER let your plants dry out. This can be using a watering can like your other plants or a hydroponics system, if you’re so inclined.

Fertilizer

Use a liquid fertilizer every week, diluting it by half each consecutive week.

Vegetable Care

Be sure to follow basic vegetable care with stake and tie plants just like any other garden.

Pests

While pests and bugs are not as big an issue as they would be for an outdoor garden, you should still watch out for whiteflies, scales, and other insects that can still threaten your basement garden.

How can SANI-TRED help?

SANI-TRED is a waterproofing material that can waterproof any projects you can imagine. When building your basement garden, you’re going to want to keep your plants well-watered and your floors dry. SANI-TRED can waterproof any type of container, keeping water with your plants not on your basement floor.

For more information on waterproofing your basement garden, visit Sani-Tred

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