What Plants Are Needed for a Window Sill?
- Grow tomatoes in the window. Hang an upside-down tomato tube or fit a wide container with a climbing cage and hunt for dwarf and cherry tomato seedlings. A six-inch diameter pot can handle one healthy plant. If the pot is too wide for the sill, place it on a pedestal or table right up against the sill where it will still get plenty of light. Turn the plant frequently once it is established so all leaves and eventually fruit get even sunshine. Plant small varieties like Tiny Tim, Small Fry and Toy Boy and enjoy tomatoes in your salad year round.
- A window sill that gets good sun is ideal for an herb garden. Set a line of pots on the kitchen sill over the sink or in any sunny window that could use a bit of fragrant greenery. Basil and parsley will grow tall and one plant each will fit in 6-inch pots. Snip herbs for cooking and the plants will stay shaped and short enough to be manageable. Chives come in a variety of flavors -- try garlic chives for a change. Plant seeds an inch apart in the pot to get a good harvest. Cilantro is trickier, but not impossible. The plants tend to go leggy and yellow when they don't get enough light. Add a grow light to the side of the window if you have gloomy winters or a spell of sunless weather. Keep cilantro trimmed so it doesn't get too tall. And position all the herbs so the larger plants don't put the shorter ones in the shade.
- African Violets have only a few requirements for a window sill habitat that will allow them to thrive. They are naturally low in height and bloom throughout the year indoors, so your constant flowerbed won't block light for the rest of the room, even when it is in bloom. The plants are happiest in east-facing windows where they are in no danger of being burned by too much sun. Water them lightly and avoid leaving droplets of water on their leaves because they will develop permanent spots. Keep the violets in small pots to encourage them to flower and don't fertilize over the winter.
- You can grow orchids on a window sill but you may need to enhance the environment to keep them healthy. Orchids need healthy light and good drainage. Try a south-facing window sill and keep the window clean to maximize available light. If your orchid has very dark leaves, it needs more light and you may need to supplement daylight. If the leaves are very pale it is getting fried and you should move it to an east-facing window sill or provide some shade at midday. Keep a potted orchid on a saucer filled with gravel and water but don't let the pot touch the water so the roots won't get soggy. In the winter, a cold-mist humidifier will approximate the rainforest and a small fan can provide the constant air circulation orchids require. Orchids can handle temperatures as low as 50 to 60 degrees F but move them back from an icy window during a winter freeze.
