By: Lena Sixbery
Grow Jackson has indoor growing spaces in three of our gardens. We can grow plants all year long in our heated hoop house and greenhouse. These plants grow slower than usual, in the winter, because of cold and lack of sunlight. Many plants still won’t be able to survive or produce much, but the ones that do, allow us to provide great local vegetables all year long! So…what do we grow? Leafy greens!
Plants like kale, collards, lettuce, and spinach love cooler temperatures. To protect themselves from freezing in a colder environment, they turn the plant’s natural starch into sugar, which has a lower freezing temperature. This makes the greens sweeter and less bitter. The leafy greens are also less likely to bolt in colder temperatures. Gardeners typically grow them in the spring and fall, but if you have access to a protected growing space, they can also do well in the winter. Other plants we grow indoors include root vegetables like radishes, carrots, and beets. Root vegetables are protected from frost because they grow below ground and like the leafy greens, are sweeter in colder temperatures.
Brassicas, like broccoli and cauliflower, do well in cooler environments because they are less likely to bolt. The heads we typically see in stores are the flower buds of the plant. Before the buds have a chance to flower or bolt, we harvest them. Bolting happens in summer because of high temperatures or fluctuations in temperature. Bolting makes these plants bitter and tough. All of the plants we grow indoors are less likely to bolt in winter. All of these factors are what make them a great fit for our indoor growing season.