The World 122221

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Growing Greens Indoors In Winter
By Deborah J. Benoit
Extension Master Gardener
University of Vermont
Temperatures have dropped, and the garden
has been put to bed for the season.
There’s not much to do except peruse garden
catalogs and shop for veggies in the produce
section of the supermarket.
Right? Wrong. While your outdoor garden
may be on hiatus until spring, you can still
grow greens for a garden-fresh salad indoors.
Leafy greens are easy to grow in containers
and, with a little planning, you can enjoy
fresh greens until it’s time to wake up the
outdoor garden next year. And you won’t
need to worry about insect pests and nibbling
critters that plague your garden outside.
First, decide what you want to grow.
Leftover lettuce or similar seeds from the past
growing season can be used.
Or try something different. Leafy green
lettuce, mesclun mix, spinach, arugula, kale
and other greens are suitable for growing in
containers. And if you have a favorite herb
you enjoy in your salads, note that many
herbs, such as chives, parsley and mint, will
grow happily indoors as well.
You also might consider including some
salad extras such as radishes or small carrot
varieties. Keep in mind that root crops and
herbs will require a deeper container to allow
adequate room to grow.
Garden centers may have seed packets
available for purchase, and online ordering is
always an option. Most seed catalog companies
will ship seed orders any time of the year.
Next, find a suitable place for your indoor
garden. Select a location away from hot or
cold drafts and where you can provide adequate
light.
Depending on what you’re growing, a
sunny south-facing windowsill that gets
direct sunlight most of the day might do the
trick. A better option is to provide artificial
lighting. A wide variety of grow lights are
available, ranging from small lights suitable
for a single plant to large, multi-shelf units.
You also can create your own plant stand
by using shelves and standard 48-inch shop
lights. Hanging the lights from an adjustable
Fresh Rosemary for Every Season
By Jodi Larison
Extension Master Gardener Intern
University of Vermont
While rosemary is not a perennial in
Vermont, you can still grow and enjoy fresh
rosemary all year. Just plant it in a container.
Bring it outside in warmer weather and inside
before the first frost.
Why rosemary?
It is attractive, resembling a small pine
tree, and has a pleasant scent, is easy to grow
and offers great flavor and versatility as a
culinary herb. All common rosemary
(Rosmarinus officinalis) plants provide edible
rosemary.
Rosemary can be grown from seed, though
not recommended, or by rooting stem cuttings.
Plants usually can be purchased for under $10
and are available at garden centers during
warmer months and by mail order anytime.
Make sure the plant you choose is a common
rosemary plant with an upright form.
Select an appropriate container for potting
your rosemary. My rosemary plant was about
7 inches tall when I bought it and is now 22
inches tall. After purchasing, I planted it in a
decorative, partially glazed ceramic container
10 inches in diameter and 9 inches in height
with a drainage hole at the bottom, a container
it could grow into. An alternate option
would be to use a smaller container and then
transplant to a larger one as the plant grows.
For planting, use soil amended with compost.
Drainage is important, as rosemary will
not tolerate excess water, but do not let your
plant dry out. If you notice that some leaves
are no longer green, more water is needed.
I fertilize my plant with a food-safe, watersoluble
fertilizer when it is outside. Rosemary
needs sun, so place your rosemary in a spot
where it will get at least 6 hours of sunlight
daily.
The only pruning I have done is to clip off
stems when harvesting fresh rosemary for
cooking or to remove dead stems. If you
choose, you can prune your plant to shape it.
While rosemary is an herb that can be used
to flavor many foods, I use it mostly in cooking
chicken and potatoes. I keep things simple,
using only three ingredients and minimizing
clean-up by using one dish for prep
and cooking.
To prepare the chicken, use skinless boneless
breasts or thighs. Remove visible fat,
place in a single layer in an oven-safe glass
• • •
chain allows you to keep the light within a
few inches of the top of the plants as they
grow. For more information on choosing and
using grow lights, check out this link: www.
uvm.edu/news/extension/tips-choosinggrow-lights.
Containers can be anything from a single
flowerpot to a window box planter or something
larger. Shallow containers (approximately
3-4 inches deep) are fine for growing
greens as their root systems are shallow. If
you opt to grow small root crops such as radishes
or “baby” carrots, check the seed packet
to be sure the container you select will be
sufficiently deep and has good drainage.
Next, fill the containers with potting mix
and plant seeds according to the directions on
the seed packet. Sow generously. Once
they’ve sprouted, you can thin to allow room
for them to grow.
Simply clip the extra seedlings with a sharp
pair of scissors near the soil. These thinned
seedlings are your first reward, microgreens
for use in salads or other dishes.
When your greens have reached 3-4 inches
high, begin harvesting. Cut off the outer
leaves, leaving inner leaves to continue to
grow.
In order to harvest throughout the winter,
plant another container of greens every 2-3
weeks. As one crop is growing, another will
be ready to enjoy.
Before you know it, you’ll be preparing to
get back to work in the outdoor garden
though you may just decide to grow greens
indoors all year long.
Rosemary, a versatile culinary herb, can be
grown successfully indoors, provided that it is
not overwatered and gets ample light. (photo:
Jodi Larison)
baking dish, then add balsamic vinegar and
fresh chopped rosemary leaves. Turn the
chicken so it is fully covered with vinegar and
the chopped rosemary leaves are evenly distributed
on both sides.
As a guide, for 2 pounds of chicken try 1/4
cup of balsamic vinegar and 1 tablespoon of
fresh chopped rosemary leaves. When you
prepare this dish again, adjust the amount of
vinegar and rosemary according to your personal
preferences.
The chicken can be served hot or cold.
When serving hot, I pair it with a starch and a
vegetable such as, rice and Brussels sprouts.
Cold, it can be incorporated into a salad or
sandwich.
For potatoes, I use a similar approach, mixing
cubed, bite-sized pieces of potato, olive
oil and fresh chopped rosemary in an ovensafe
glass baking dish. I bake the potatoes
until they are crispy on the outside and soft on
the inside, stirring a couple times during the
cooking process. Any type of potato will
work but I like to mix two or three types.
Other ingredients that can be used in either
of these dishes would include, but not be
limited to, garlic, onion or pepper. You can
find many online recipes using fresh rosemary
with many types of meats and fish, as
well as in baking. Bon Appétit!
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December 22, 2021 The WORLD page 7