I left behind a great little herb garden in Mississippi, and I've really been missing it. Bottled spices just don't have the same visual appeal. Plus, who isn't just a little bit happier with some plants growing in her house? My aunt Wyveta showed me how she and her grand kids built a light box to get some plants started at their house. I decided to make one to get some herbs started. They'll live in my kitchen window :-)
In case you're just dying to grow some plants in your house (And if you decide to grow something illegal, by all means DO NOT tell anyone that I had something to do with it. When I say "herbs," I mean herbs. No quotation marks. Herbs. Period.), here's how to get started.
Gather up this stuff - a water-proof work surface, box, box cutter, plug-in light source, fluorescent light bulb, aluminum foil, adhesive (I have double sided tape), pots, soil, and seeds.
Turn the box on its bigger side if you have several things to plant. If you want to grow tall plants but not many of them, turn it on its small side for extra height. Line the inside of the box with aluminum foil. I used double sided tape, but I don't recommend it. It gets old peeling the backing off a few dozen pieces of tape stuck down in a box. Don't be like me. Use a glue stick. Once you line the box with aluminum foil, here's what you have...
Now put the box on your head to keep the aliens from being able to scan your brain. Just kidding! It looks kinda freaky though. Poke a hole in the top where your light needs to fit through. Then cut the hole just big enough to get the light socket through, but not so big that it can't hold itself up. Once it's through, screw the light bulb in from the inside. Trust me.
Using a fluorescent light keeps it from getting too hot inside the box. Plus it's good for your energy bill. Haven't you seen all those New York PSAs about changing your lights over to fluorescent bulbs? No? Hmm...
Anyway. Turn the light on and...
...that's how you make a light box! Technically, that's true. But I wanna show you the rest of what I did.
Fill all your pots with soil and plant your seeds according to package directions. I planted chives, oregano, parsley, thyme, cilantro, cat grass (also called wheat grass - tasty cat snack), and catnip. But please, remember to write the name of the plant on the pot before you start planting. Otherwise, things get confusing. And messy. Aren't you glad I did this before you? Now you can do everything right on the first try and people will think you're a lot smarter than I am. Just tryin' to help you out.
Put all the pots in the light box, close the door (flaps), and leave it alone. That poor little pot in the front row didn't make a very good soil scoop after a few minutes. I felt sorry for it. I couldn't just throw him away. He needs to die for a worthy cause. Growing catnip is a worthy cause, right?
But anyway. THAT'S how you make a light box. But I love you guys. I wanna show you what's happened since last Thursday. On Tuesday, I peeked in the box and...
Just look at those little grass sprouts! They're trying to get out of their busted pot. That's what they're tryin' to do. And then today (just one week later)...
BAM! Growing like weeds! Well grass...well... Nuts. Growing like wheat sprouts? Does that sound better? Maybe, but just doesn't make much sense. Ugh...
Look at all those tiny catnip sprouts! I promise there are specks of green poking through for the things people can eat, too. It just so happens that the plants for the kittens are the most impressive.
If you decide to build one let me know. I thought it was fun, but then again I'm weird, and I was going crazy without having a plant to tend to. But now look at all my tiny plants :-)
Oh...and don't forget to water. After the initial planting, spritzing might work best so you don't drown anything. It can get a little humid locked up in a box all day and you don't want anything to mold. Happy planting!
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