Growing my own greens...suggestions & help please?

[KairaandTaz08]

Hi,
I need some help.
Does anyone grow their own indoor plants for their beardies? I’m looking more into Alfalfa and dandelion greens, due to the fact that they are smaller, easier (from what I understand), and good staples. With the economy the way it is and wanting to be self-sufficient for them, I’ve decided this is the best way to go. Along with breeding crickets…which has been a nightmare lol. Don’t say roaches are easier lol…I’m allergic.
So, I have some questions lol…I’m not familiar with either plant/herb and don’t do well with plants in the first place lol.
I want to start from seeds…are there any specific places I can get them or are they pretty much found anywhere?
How would you recommend I plant them? (How large of a pot? What type of pot? And a specific safe soil brand name would help tremendously, as I couldn’t find any for the crickets.)
Are there anymore really good greens that you can grow inside (that are easy to care for)? I know some herbs, but they aren’t something I want to feed my two all of the time and mustard, collard, and turnips are “outdoor” plants lol.
Any advice/suggestions would be very helpful.
Thanks,
Abi

 

[pscaulkins]

Dandelions would be really easy I would think. I would get those 2' long planters with the dish to sit it in. For dirt, there is organic planting mix. I have used this before. I would first try Walmart for the planter as they are cheaper. Not sure where you can get the planting mix. Most likely any variety store. I grew a summer garden but I don't have any room now for a planter.

 

[KairaandTaz08]

Thanks for responding .
You really think I need a 2' long planter? Or are you saying to get several pots and then put them in the 2' long planter. Sorry...even with the research I've done, I haven't figured everything out. The one thing I have noticed is that a lot of places say to not use soil :? ...there's a reason but I forgot why lol. I actually plan to grow more than the two that I listed for a little more variety. I found several good "lists" of indoor herbs (mostly herbs). It's not going to be fun, but I think it will pay off in the end. We can use them for ourselves also (and I think I'll add cat nip for the cats to "have fun with" lol...might as well get some entertainment out of it :mrgreen: )!
Thanks,
Abi

 

[beardedwizard]

Thanks for responding .
You really think I need a 2' long planter? Or are you saying to get several pots and then put them in the 2' long planter. Sorry...even with the research I've done, I haven't figured everything out. The one thing I have noticed is that a lot of places say to not use soil :? ...there's a reason but I forgot why lol. I actually plan to grow more than the two that I listed for a little more variety. I found several good "lists" of indoor herbs (mostly herbs). It's not going to be fun, but I think it will pay off in the end. We can use them for ourselves also (and I think I'll add cat nip for the cats to "have fun with" lol...might as well get some entertainment out of it :mrgreen: )!
Thanks,
Abi

Hey Abi,

Every spring for the past 3 years I've had my own garden along with our neighbor, collard greens, and mustard greens are very easy to grow. I've tried just about every thing imaginable when it comes to veges for the dragons, but collard greens thrive the best hands down. And my leaves will grow to 2-3 times the store size(12"-20" diameter), but you have to plant a lot as you will go through them very quickly, or at least I do with the number of mouths I have to feed. But if you have the room and patience it can save you the hassle of going to the store, buying to much and having it rot in the refrigerator, and it can save you a lot of money depending on your dragons.

It's very simple, just head to you closest garden center, home depot, lowes, or walmart... In the garden department you will find little seed packets, they are generally $1.99 a packet, and I just buy around $10 worth. Now you will only need 1 packet of each green as 1 packet will give you at least 30+ plants. But with the $10 worth I buy, I can plant 4 rows that are 100+ feet long. But my biggest problem is picking the leaves fast enough before they hit the ground and bugs love collard greens. So by the end of summer you will have leaves that look like swiss cheese, but I just cut away any "chewed" sections...

It's definitely worth the effort, but I guess that depends on you as an individual. Some people just don't want to mess with growing their own veges and don't mind picking up new veges every week.

But if you have any questions once you decide where you are growing them just let me know!

Take care,

Anthony

 

[KairaandTaz08]

Thanks for responding .
You really think I need a 2' long planter? Or are you saying to get several pots and then put them in the 2' long planter. Sorry...even with the research I've done, I haven't figured everything out. The one thing I have noticed is that a lot of places say to not use soil :? ...there's a reason but I forgot why lol. I actually plan to grow more than the two that I listed for a little more variety. I found several good "lists" of indoor herbs (mostly herbs). It's not going to be fun, but I think it will pay off in the end. We can use them for ourselves also (and I think I'll add cat nip for the cats to "have fun with" lol...might as well get some entertainment out of it :mrgreen: )!
Thanks,
Abi

Hey Abi,

Every spring for the past 3 years I've had my own garden along with our neighbor, collard greens, and mustard greens are very easy to grow. I've tried just about every thing imaginable when it comes to veges for the dragons, but collard greens thrive the best hands down. And my leaves will grow to 2-3 times the store size(12"-20" diameter), but you have to plant a lot as you will go through them very quickly, or at least I do with the number of mouths I have to feed. But if you have the room and patience it can save you the hassle of going to the store, buying to much and having it rot in the refrigerator, and it can save you a lot of money depending on your dragons.

It's very simple, just head to you closest garden center, home depot, lowes, or walmart... In the garden department you will find little seed packets, they are generally $1.99 a packet, and I just buy around $10 worth. Now you will only need 1 packet of each green as 1 packet will give you at least 30+ plants. But with the $10 worth I buy, I can plant 4 rows that are 100+ feet long. But my biggest problem is picking the leaves fast enough before they hit the ground and bugs love collard greens. So by the end of summer you will have leaves that look like swiss cheese, but I just cut away any "chewed" sections...

It's definitely worth the effort, but I guess that depends on you as an individual. Some people just don't want to mess with growing their own veges and don't mind picking up new veges every week.

But if you have any questions once you decide where you are growing them just let me know!

Take care,

Anthony

Anthony,
Thanks for responding...but I think I have the "outdoor" greens/plants taken care of. Lucas' parents have a huge garden and are more than willing to grow them for us. I was/am more in need of help with the indoor plants/herbs for the winter months (though I know collards can survive cooler weather...it may get too cold here, I want to have both just in case). We also live in an apartment & don't have any land of our own to grow large plants & greens, along with a limited amount of space inside.
Thanks for your input, but I really need more info on the herbs & other indoor plants I intend to grow. I've found all of the seeds (for both indoor & outdoor plants) that I want online for a good price. I can't find any around here right now...but still need to look at a few more stores.
Abi

 

[Trogdor80]

I grow my own prickly pears for my dragon. She loves them.

Prickly pears have no trouble with the extra moisture in the eastern US, as long as you keep the taller growing native plants from choking it out.

 

[KairaandTaz08]

I grow my own prickly pears for my dragon. She loves them.

Prickly pears have no trouble with the extra moisture in the eastern US, as long as you keep the taller growing native plants from choking it out.

I'm assuming they are too big to grow inside, though, right? Way too big lol. I've only tried to feed them the cactus pad, but struggled with getting the "thorns"/"prickly things" off.
Abi

 

[Trogdor80]

I grow my own prickly pears for my dragon. She loves them.

Prickly pears have no trouble with the extra moisture in the eastern US, as long as you keep the taller growing native plants from choking it out.

I'm assuming they are too big to grow inside, though, right? Way too big lol. I've only tried to feed them the cactus pad, but struggled with getting the "thorns"/"prickly things" off.
Abi

It depends on the species. Some prickly pears have pads smaller than the palm of your hand, some have pads bigger than your entire hand(fingers and all)

 

[invictusrules]

The main problem with growing food plants inside is a lack of light. I've tried to grow herbs in a sunny window, but they don't thrive. Leafy greens, herbs, fruiting plants - they all need HUGE amounts of full sun for extended times. You could sprout things like dandelions, but they'll most likely grow up pale and leggy and probably not very nutritious.

Another problem for indoor-grown food plants is the increased nitrate/nitrite content. The lower light levels mess with nitrogen conversion, and you can get some pretty bitter-tasting stuff.

Are you sure collards won't survive your winter? I tossed some main stems out into the compost pile, and the things rooted and sprouted new leaves! Now I've got free collards. Granted, the lowest temperature we've had so far this winter is some 22 degree nights, and snow is a theoretical concept.

 

[KairaandTaz08]

Yeah, I'm still trying to figure things out. There are several things we could do to solve some of the problems, but I know it won't be easy.
The temps will easily drop to 12F (that's the low for the rest of the month & will "occur" several times this month), but we've had negative records (recently) and ice storms are a big problem here too. I think collards may survive either as low as 10F or 20F (can't remember), but not with snow & ice on top of them :? . We live in Kansas, the weather changes all of the time. I need to be sure that we have a back-up. For example we have had several floods that ruined "country" crops all together this year. Wind on the "plains" can cause great damage to crops, not to mention the quite frequent tornado warnings (& actual tornados) we get during "tornado season".
LOL, my point being, we have to be sure we have something as a back up. We couldn't drive the 30-35miles it takes to get to Lucas' parents in a snow storm...& sometimes it's risky to drive the less than 5 miles to the Walmarts/Targets/ect. around here. It could be worse...if we lived further north, we wouldn't have much of a chance with any outdoor greens.
Our main reason is probably the economy, but it's also the weather & chances of not being able to drive out to get greens in the "country" (we live in an apartment, so we can't have a garden outside).
We don't have too many options, I know, but we can atleast try.
I really appreciate everyone's input...we obviously have several variables here that will pose quite a few problems, so any help is welcomed.
Abi

 

[invictusrules]

Hmm... putting on thinking cap... How do mature collards do as a potted plant? In other words, can you bring already-growing plants indoors and grow them for a while by a window for emergency harvesting? They're actually kinda pretty, like a fiddleleaf fig tree. And I think a more mature plant would survive on lower light for a while. Turnips might do okay, too. And if you're feeling adventurous, a cold frame might ease some of the temperature and wind problems outside. (I learned that your wind is no joke - my first introduction to Kansas resulted in a grapefruit-sized bruise when the wind ripped the car door right out of my hand and slammed it into my thigh!)

If you try any techniques, let us know the results. (This is reviving my old dream of building a greenhouse for some of these same reasons.)