Crops for windowsills

[Sara]

As the weather turns chilly it can be tempting to stay indoors and grow your own at home. Luckily windowsills make great mini gardens for all sorts of crops.

Grow Your Own would love to know what's going to be growing on your windowsills this winter. Will you try your hand at herbs and microgreens or are you aiming for something more exotic? Whether you have a citrus tree or potted basil plant, we'd love to hear your plans!


Your comments may be edited and published in Grow Your Own magazine's January issue.

[Florence Fennel]

I'm trying to overwinter some chilli plants for the first time this year, it seemed such a shame to compost them they looked so healthy, so they'll be taking up my windowsill space.

[FROSTYFRECKLE]

Pea shoots, winter lettuce, (very) early sowing of tomatoes.

[veggiechicken]

I always get restless and have the urge to grow indoors through the winter so, regular as clockwork, out comes the sprouter and its collection of musty seeds. Make a note - Must buy fresh this year. There'll be some mustard and cress too and perhaps a pot of pea shoots to remind me of the taste of summer.

[shona_b]

I've a bag of meteor peas which I am sucession sowing on the windowsill for pea shoots plus will attaempt to keep the chilli's alive for next year. Winter lettuce is already germinating and if there's no room left in the greenhouse or if the night-time temperatures drop dramatically they will remain indoors - dining table in the bay window rather than the too narrow windowsill! I'll also be sprouting some beanshoots.

[justgimmeethefaxmaam]

Outside & inside

I'm lucky to have protected outdoor windowsills so I will grow rocket,winter lettuce,mizuna & mustard greens.



On the inside windowsills I hope to grow Pea shoots,adzuki beans,beansprouts, micro mixed oriental leaves and anything else I think will grow

[northepaul]

I am growing some winter salad leaves as an experiment and herbs - basil and coriander, if it'll survive the lack of light.

[JamesM]

I'm experimenting with sticking some herbs in. We've got basil, coriander, parsley and chives on the go and they've germinate really well, helped no doubt by that lovely few dyas of warm weather a week or so ago. Now they're three weeks or so in and seem very strong so i'm happy

[SarrissUK]

I am starting to do pea shoots again, after having had a bit of a pea overdose this summer. I always have a bit of chives in a pot, summer or winter and will attempt to overwinter a couple of chilli plants. I planted some herbs for micro herbs as an experiment this weekend and might try some parsley and dill from seed. I'm lucky to have big glass doors at the back of the kitchen, and I've put a cheap wooden shelf unit against it which I use all year around for all seedlings and that works fantastically well even over winter, as it gets light all day and stays pretty warm. I might try some proper bean spouts like you get from the chinese takeaways as a friend recommended a way of growing them, but that'll be in a cupboard, as they shouldn't have much light!

[DGoulston]

Going to over winter my Cayenne Chilli plants this year for the first time, and at the moment they are still flowering so should not need to cut them back that soon.

Also going to bring the Parsley in, and give that a nice spot as it has survived quite well so far!

Darren

[chefgage]

After reading some of the comments on here I have brought my chilli plants indoors and are now doing very nicely on the window sill. They are still flowering and producing chillies . I am going to try and over winter them (have not tried this before). Will also be growing some lettuce on the window sill now that the lettuce in the raised beds outside has all gone

[solway cropper]

The usual sprouting seeds: mustard, cress, salad rape, alfalfa and I'll also be trying pea shoots this year.

I have a couple of pots of basil in the greenhouse which I'll bring into the house as soon as frosts are forecast.

[Rabidbun]

Probably bringing in one of my parsley pots this year, I've three overwintering chillies as well (though may dump those in the bedroom if I can get rid of those annoying black flies as they take up a lot of space and don't produce much).

If I can, I would like to try micro greens, pea shoots, sprouting seeds and perhaps some extra room to repot winter supermarket herbs in an attempt to keep them alive longer.

[alex-adam]

We have a couple of chilli plants (grown from seed out of some chillies the chap at the veg shop gave us earlier in the year) there is a large red chilli on one and plenty of embrio fruits on both. Also basil, which we keep re-rooting, just take off three or four sprigs, pop the in a jar of water, when roots appear, pot them up and start the next lot off - have been doing this for ages all from a supermarket basil plant. And salad leaves grown in a half seed tray.

a-a

[Thelma Sanders]

A sweet pepper plant, with a few peppers to ripen, before it gets a hair cut.
and I'm growing some of Seeds of Italy's mix of lettuce/radichio..oh and there's some basil