As the world is modernizing, it is becoming more and more difficult to have open gardens, especially in the cities. In fact, taking a walk in an open-air garden in the middle of the cities might not be that healthy. It is because they also partake the polluted city air, which makes them harmful too. To tackle this, many countries are coming up with indoor gardens, that let people enjoy fresh air in the middle of cities. And what’s more? You can even create your own personal indoor herb garden to tackle indoor air pollution. However, if you are living in a country like the UK that won’t be necessary as it has a fair share of indoor gardens. Furthermore, the UK is also putting efforts in other directions as well to improve the air quality of London.
Top Indoor Gardens to Visit in the UK
It does feel good to visit a garden in summer but as winter starts to arrive, the eagerness as well as the daylight hours starts to fade. Now there are options available to you in the form of indoor gardens, which let you enjoy the greenery in all seasons. Let us now look at top indoor gardens in the UK that you can visit.
1. Barbican Conservatory:
This complex has about twelve kilometers of balconies, a wildlife garden and horticultural society. There are about two thousand species of tropical as well as sub-tropical plants gifted by dignitaries visiting Lord Mayor. The garden is also the second largest glasshouse in London and was opened to public in 1984. It remains open for visitors only on Sundays between 12 Noon and 5.30 PM.
2. Chiswick House:
This garden is made in a glasshouse 300ft long and ideal time to visit the conservatory is between February and March. It was built by 6th Duke of Devonshire in 1813 and has a rare collection of Camellias Duke collected in 1858. There is also an annual festival in which the main highlights are them Camellias. The building housing the indoor garden is also a Grade I listed structure and was restored recently.
3. Palm House:
This garden was constructed in 1840 and housed the palms Victorians had collected. Later on, the iron structure was replaced by glass one since the iron structure was not favorable for the tropical rainforest conditions required for palmiculture. You can see some of the rare plants here, as for example, triangle palm brought here from Madagascar and the cycad from South Africa that was brought in 1775.
4. Princess of Wales Conservatory:
This conservatory builds ten climatic zones with the garden consisting among others, the dry tropical environment like the savannah and the desert. Now you do not need to go to Canary Islands to explore winter flora, such as echiums, agaves and the aeoniums, since it is available here only in this garden. Exotic fauna consisting of poison dart frogs, piranhas and water dragons enhance the cold weather appeal in the garden.
5. Hall Place:
Spread over sixty-five hectares, it contains palm house, a demonstration garden, heraldic topiary, herb garden and botanical garden. It has a rich variety of sub-tropical plants and exotic crops like avocados and coffee are on display. The central ponds has Terrapins and if you are visiting the garden in February then you will get to see butterflies from all around the globe flying around in the garden.
6. Eden Project:
In this garden, you will find largest indoor rainforest in the world which is home to many tropical plants, has paddy field and a waterfall. It also has Mediterranean biome where you can view the olive and lemon trees, perfumed herbs and the vines.
7. Davies Alpine House:
The atmosphere inside the garden is quite refreshing and you get to see different types of mountain plants like dianthus, campanulas and the tulips. On many occasions, you will get to see cobalt blue Chilean Blue Crocus that is one of their rarest plants.
8. Atrium Gardens:
This would be a ten-story glass cube with six separate double height gardens. These 6 gardens will be based on the themes of Pacific forest, Canyonlands, Midwest, Mid-Atlantic, Gulf Coast, and Potomac.
How to make your own indoor herb garden
Herbs are small plants that can be grown indoors. They not only look good but they also smell good. These can be grown in any season of the year. You need only a few items to grow herbs indoors. Pots with drainage holes, fresh soil, gravel, herb seedlings and plant makers.
How to plant
The initial process is to get hold of all the items mentioned above. Secondly, if is difficult to find the herb seedlings at your local plant shop then, you can buy those from an online seed shop.
If you get hold of a pot without holes, you can always drill a few at the bottom. Fill up the pot with 3/4th inch gravel. Then fill it completely with soil. After that, dig hole either to fit the plant or place the seeds. Fix the position of the plant or seed by pressing the soil adjacent and below it firmly. About 1/4th inch of soil should be present above the seeds.
Spray chalkboard paint on the top bands of each pot. After it has dried, label each plant so that it becomes easy to identify the herb type.
Indoor herb types
- Oregano: This herb grows well in sunlight. Hence, place them in a location which receives adequate sunlight.
- Basil: It is also a sun light loving herb and a moist soil.
- Rosemary: It is advised to get Rosemary plant instead of the seeds. It should be planted in a mixture of soil and coarse sand.
- Chives: Chives can be considered as a user-friendly herb, which does not require any effort to grow. You can harvest Chives after it has grown 6.12 inches in height.
- Peppermint: This herb needs less sunlight.
- Thyme: Thyme grows well only if it exposed to sunlight for 6 hours every day. Hence, placing the herb on the window that receives the mentioned hours of sunlight everyday is essential.
- Parsley: This is another pro-sun light herb, which when placed especially facing the south grows perfectly well.
Precautions
Do not cluster different herbs in a single pot. Each herb has its own requirements for growth, and hence should be placed individually. Herbs do not require the normal soil that is available in your backyard. The essential soil is available in any local garden shop.
It is advised not to constantly water the herbs. Dry soil or yellow leaves can be an indicator that the herb needs watering.
Summary:
If you like gardens, then seasonal changes will not be able to hold you anymore, since these indoor gardens have everything found in any outdoor garden with the added advantage that winter or rains will not deter you from visiting them.