How do I start an indoor farm on my windowsill?

In the city, we have no shortage of vertical space and certainly no shortage of windows — especially for condo dwellers! Opportunistic farmers know that if we have this real estate available to us, we can make the most of our living space by starting a windowsill garden to grow delicious veggies and herbs. Having plants, potted or otherwise, by the window add a beautiful touch of life to your space and double as effortless decorative pieces too!

Here are key questions you want to ask yourself when evaluating your space for your window farm.

😰 Help! What if I don't have space on my window for a farm? 
If window farming isn't a viable option where you live, fear not, FMC's got you covered. I've written extensively on other modes of indoor farming in the city, including wall farming and balcony farming. Be sure to give those a read because I share a lot of industry secrets and tips I learned in my years of experience.

Assess your window

🌞 How much sun does my window get?

Understanding how much sun your desired window will get is important, especially direct sunlight. As a rule, plants need six to eight hours of direct sun exposure on a daily basis. They also love morning sun, so be sure that the window you pick for your indoor garden gets plenty of early morning sun rays.

Living in Canada, it’s important to pay attention to how the amount and frequency of sunlight varies through the different seasons, specifically as it pertains to where you are situated. If you are in a condo, pay attention to where the other buildings are located around you. In some cases, you might receive sunlight during the summer but have that sunlight obstructed by another building during the winter.

🕶 How much light does my window block?

Unless your windows are tinted, you will get enough light waves through your window to grow food with direct sunlight. It is important that the sun is shining directly on where you are growing, free from any obstacles.

What plants can I grow on my windowsill?

The types of crops you can grow depend entirely on the amount of light your window gets, as well as the surface area of your windowsill. My advice for beginners is to start with herbs, then move on to microgreens and leafy greens, and eventually graduating to fruiting crops.

🔅 Low sunlight: two to four hours

• Herbs. These are great to grow if you have a little amount of space and can’t devote a lot of time to maintaining your garden.
• Microgreens. After sprouting, the next easiest crop to grow on a windowsill is microgreens. They also don’t need that much direct light to flourish.
• Leafy greens. These include your collards, kale, swish chard, and other lettuces

🔆 Mid to full sunlight: over four hours

• Leafy greens. These also work with mid-sunlight, however, some leafy greens don’t do well with full sun.
• Strawberries. They are sun-loving fruits, and once the roots are established, you can grow the berries over time.
• Tomatoes. These are amazing to grow in a full-sun window. The main issue, however, is ensuring your tomato plant has ample space to grow. They can be guided to keep things contained.
• Peppers. Peppers are great as they grow tall but don’t require much space. In fact, you can grow a lot of peppers in direct sun windows.
• Cucumbers. This veggie is not ideal for growing by a window unless you have the vertical space for it to climb. Again, these crops thrive in full sun.
• Lemons. There are dwarf crops out there for different fruiting trees. This means you can have a mini orchard right inside your condo!

🍅 How much food can I grow by my window?

The amount of crops you want to cultivate depends on (a) how much space you allocate by your window, (b) how much sun you get, and (c) what you grow. With the right mindset, you can grow a lot!

What are the different types of windowsill farms?

🪴 Pots and boxes

Having planters, boxes, and pots on your windowsill is a great way to start growing. They’re affordable, simple, and easy to use. If you need help narrowing down your options, check out my post on the best planters for growing food.

These are great ways to get started, and really that’s the point. Just start small and as your farm grows, you grow.

🪑 Furniture

Yes, you read that right — you can start a windowsill farm using everyday furniture! You don’t always have to break the bank for specialized farming products in order to grow in the city. There are a lot of affordable, easily accessible furniture options that you can buy to help with your indoor garden. As long as your plants receive light, you can grow on the structure. IKEA has some nice bookshelves that have glass levels, which makes them ideal for growing.

Make sure you are careful as you grow things on your furniture as water can damage the table and the floor.

💧 Hydroponics

With hydroponic farms, you can really get dense growth in a tight spot, which is the case for most folks living in apartments in a big city like Toronto. Every inch counts, and with a hydroponic system, you can capitalize on every piece of surface area. As pictured below, you can have a plentiful yield of cucumbers even in a compact space.

An example of a hydroponic system is shallow water culture (SWC), which I helped build for one of my clients in a Japanese shōji style. If you’re new to the incredible world of hydroponic or water culture, I break it all down in simple, easy to understand terms on this blog post here.

Securing your windowsill farm

Reinforcing your windowsill farm is one of the biggest challenges to indoor farming, as glass is not a surface you can really attach or drill things to — after all, you want to keep your window in one piece by the end of your project! Here are a few smart strategies to bolster your windowsill farm.

• Use the windowsill. In most cases, you can attach things to your windowsill, assuming it is robust and big enough.
• Use suction cups. You can use suction cups to hold your farm against the window to keep things aligned in place, but not as the primary support for your farm. Glass is not structural, and the weight of the farm cannot be propped up by the window itself.
• Use the ceiling or floor. Stringing rope or chain from the ceiling can keep your farm from falling over. If you wish to use the floor to anchor your farm, note that you must bolt in your reinforcements, otherwise the farm may still run the risk of toppling over.

⛑ How can I protect the floor near my windowsill farm?

When you grow food inside, it is important to protect the floor from potential water and soil damage. Here are some great ways to protect the floor:

• Make sure your pots don’t have drain holes that will spill liquid onto the floor.
• Place mats or a protective layer that can hold a bit of water and dirt under your windowsill farm.
• Have a towel or rag at your disposal to clean up any messes as they happen.

Safety precautions for your windowsill farm

Take a look at the retractable hanging farm above — looks cool, doesn’t it? I think this idea is innovative and has potential, but the main problem I see here is safety! As I repeatedly emphasize on this blog, the safety of yourself and others is an important aspect to consider as we grow vertically. Soil and plants are heavy — especially when they are fully grown — and having this fall on anyone can be deadly. When wind and rain and storms are added to the equation, it would be best to hire a contractor to build something sturdy or not do it at all.

The same caution should be applied to the inside of the window, too. Be sure that your windowsill farm won’t be at risk of being knocked over, either by children, animals, or even yourself as you lean on it to harvest. Make sure it is secure.

What are some products I can use to grow by my window?

If you want to make the job easier for yourself, there is a wide assortment of ready to use products that can help you start your windowsill farm immediately. Here is a collage of products you can use to grow in your home.

Updated August 11, 2021. Originally published April 8, 2020.