The AeroGarden is an original portable garden which includes everything needed to grow herbs, flowers, and vegetables all year indoors with ease. No pesticides are needed and it requires no soil or green thumb. The AeroGarden leverages cutting edge aeroponic technology to grow plants in air and water. It includes grow lights, pods, a microprocessor, and more. Plants can even be transplanted outdoors after growing!
See an example of plant growth in this video, and three AeroGardens we recommend at the bottom of this post:
Purple Vanda Orchids are some of the most showy orchids to grow. Vanda orchids like lots of light, humidity, and air movement. As you can see this Vanda has flowers that are 3 to 4 inches in diameter. Vandas can grow in a large fir bark mix or with very little mix around the roots, provided that humidity is high. Humidity can be attained with misting, trays of rocks with water in them, etc.
See the photo below, a beautiful large purple Vanda Orchid.
In the San Francisco Bay Area and many other areas in California (also Hawaii) Epidendrum Speciosus can be grown outdoors or indoors. As you can see in the photo below, this Orchid gets to 2 or 3 feet in height. It blooms for a long time and is hardy. Epidendrum Speciosus can be grown in a fine for bark or other loose mix. This Epidendrum likes a lot of sun, warm temperatures, humidity, and air movement. You can find Epidendrum Orchids in many colors, including orange, red, pink, yellow, and more.
Some succulents grow faster than others. When growing succulents, it is important to ensure they have enough room to expand. Some will grow tall while others will spread quite a bit horizontally. When planting succulents, look up photos or a picture on the plant tag to understand what they look like when mature.
Landscaping fabric is good to keep down weeds in the garden, but it isn’t usually attractive unless covered afterwards with bark, rocks, or pebbles. Landscaping fabric doesn’t allow as much air, and natural elements to get to roots, but it is terrific that it cuts down on weeds which can take nutrients and water.
Bark can be used on top of landscaping fabric in the garden, or on it’s own. Bark does break down over time, so may need to be replaced in a few years. If it is very freshly shredded or chopped, bark can remove nitrogen. Therefore, the more fresh the bark, the better it is to ensure there is organic material and nitrogen.
Rocks or pebbles can make a nice bold statement. They aren’t always as cheap as bark. They also may or may not allow as much drainage, depending on the size. They can look great though, so if you don’t mind a heavy mulch, they can work well.
