Simple Window Garden by Chance Lange

Ever feel like your dorm or room is dull and lacking life? Well, one way to spice up your living space is to create a window garden. As college students or busy adults this may seem like a poor way to spend your precious time, but I have found from my own experience that starting a window garden is not only easy but also a very rewarding activity. It can bring a sense of calm into your daily routine, and even lets you grow your own herbs, food, or flowers. More than anything, it’s a small way to make your space feel more alive, more intentional, and more like your own.  

Getting started doesn't require much, in fact you can use what you already have in the house for the most part. To start out, gather some containers. These can be old food jars, plant pots from the store, egg cartons, really anything that can hold dirt and water. I would still recommend you add drainage to these containers by poking holes in the bottom and adding a layer or rocks.  The next step is to start some plants. This will require potting soil and seed. Although, you can sometimes use vegetable scraps. Green onions and celery are perfect for this. Just chop off the root ends, let them sit in water for a few days until they grow roots, then stick them in your pots. From here things are pretty straight forward. For the most part, make sure your plants are getting a decent amount of light. This could be by placing them on the windowsill or a table/desk that gets good sunlight throughout the day. You can grow lamps but it’s not necessary. Next thing is watch what you are watering them with. Rainwater and purified water are going to be the best thing for your plants. Tap water is okay, but I would recommend entering your plants to make sure the chemicals are not hurting them. I would also recommend using room temp water, so you don’t shock your plants from the temperature change.  

From here, let’s recap what you’ll need to start your very own window garden: 

• A container with proper drainage 

• Potting soil 

• Seeds or plant starters (or vegetable scraps like green onions or celery) 

• A source of natural light 

• Water (ideally room temperature) 

  
  

With these few steps you can start your journey to having your very own indoor garden. Not only will you be spicing up your space, but you will also be learning a skill that can transfer to bigger projects like an outdoor garden like the one we have here on the UW-Platteville campus. Starting a garden can be a fun activity to do with friends or just a way to take off the stress of everyday life. Even small, indoor gardens can provide fresh herbs or ingredients, which can be a great addition to simple meals. Over time, you’ll gain more experience with how plants grow and what they need, which can easily be applied to larger gardening projects in the future. 

 Sources: 

The Best Water for Plants & How To Choose. (2025, October 24). PlantIn. Retrieved March 31, 2026, from https://myplantin.com/blog/best-water-for-plants 

How to Regrow Vegetable Scraps. (2019, February 25). Simple Bites. Retrieved March 31, 2026, from https://simplebites.net/how-to-regrow-vegetable-scraps/