Welcome Spring with Easy Indoor Container Gardens

This morning is another edition of my regular segment on Knoxville's WTNZ Fox43 and I'm sharing some of my favorite tips for  gardens. As someone who lives in a condo, I've always been a fan of container gardening, whether they live on my tiny patio or inside my home. With spring just around the corner, we've had some snowy weather in East Tennessee and I'm hoping warmer days are coming soon.

In the meantime, I'm adding some cheer to my home with these easy container gardening ideas.

 

First is this wonderful idea from author & blogger Fern Richardson. In her book, Small Space Container Gardens, she shares lots of inspiration, including re-purposing this vintage flour sifter as a container for plants.

Another great kitchen item that can have a whole new use is a colander. For my segment, I used a colander for some violas that I plan on transplanting outdoors when the weather gets warmer, but I also saw this great idea for using a colander to create a salad garden. 

Another item I re-purposed as a garden container was an ironstone gravy boat, similar to the one shown below. I decided it was a great place for a small African violet plant since they need to be watered from below. Another good tip for African violets is to fill your watering can after you've finished watering and let it sit until the next time so the water is completely room temperature. These lovely flowers don't appreciate cold tap water! 

                           

Having container gardens around the house is nice, but why keep them all to yourself? I created a ready-made container garden gift using just a jade plant wrapped in burlap, a bag of potting soil, an aluminum planter and some ornamental river rocks. For less than $5, this easy DIY gift provides the recipient with a garden in no time. 

                                                

And finally, one of my very favorite plants to grow: Mother In Law's Tongue. This and snake plant are two very closely related specimens (one has yellow edged leaves, one doesn't), but both are easy to grow and hard to kill. Not only are they funky to look at and add some visual interest to your home, they purify the air while you sleep, so it's a win win. 

What are your favorite indoor plants for container gardens? Are you as ready for spring as I am? Happy Thursday friend! 

Missed one of my Fox43 segments? Check out a complete list here!