and now I want one

[Sara Noel]

LOL

Tomato Christmas Decorations?

Would you like a tomato plant as Christmas decor? I would love to get one. Some years, I get a poinsettia or a Christmas cactus, so this would be even better.

[madhen]

I had one last year. I moved an heirloom tomato inside, just as an experiment, and it provided me fresh tomatoes to go with the salad on Christmas Eve!

[Spirit Deer]

At this latitude, tomatoes won't do much without supplemental full-spectrum lighting. A windowsill ain't gonna do it. BTDT.

We opted for AeroGardens to grow peppers and tomatoes. Not cheap, but picking tomatoes all winter fresh off the vine just steps from our salad bowls is priceless. And they do look pretty. Better than that, they smell amazing.

We also use AGs to grow lettuce, herbs, and flowers all winter. We currently only have one running with tomatoes in it, where normally we have five going in our kitchen. It's amazing what a difference in mood we're both noticing without all that full-spectrum light in our lives during these dark days. The advantages for us aren't just the fresh produce.

More info:

Home Of The AeroGarden From AeroGrow International

There are ways to make your own home-brew rig too. They're cheaper but not as stylish as an AG.

*going right now to start up the cilantro garden*

[Sara Noel]

I've wanted an Aero garden. But I've also wanted a vintage Eames terrarium (for a different purpose). I love indoor plants.
I've never tried to grow vegetables inside.

[Spirit Deer]

We've had good luck with tomatoes. At the moment, they're the only crop we have going that hasn't managed to pick up those stupid little gnats we can't get rid of. I've had to trash three gardens that were otherwise doing well. That sucked especially since one of them was growing amazing Anaheim and bell pepper plants and had just started to produce. I think the gnats came in on a pepper plant we brought in from outside last fall.

I'll put temptation in your path and mention AG is having a 20% off sale that ends at midnight, with free shipping. That's more than I paid for any of ours but still a decent price. For tomatoes you'd need a tall garden, which unfortunately is their most expensive model.

In our experience it's hard to justify the cost of an AeroGarden from a strictly financial standpoint except if you use a lot of fresh herbs and would normally buy them at the store. Then they're a decent investment that you'd probably at least break even with, if you use your own seeds instead of buying seed kits and do some other things. But for us, the benefits aside from financial are worth it. It's amazing to have something green and growing and producing food when inches away outside the window there's snow on the ground. A small packet of wilted fresh herbs here is $3, so it doesn't take long to make back the maintenance costs of an AG if you use much for herbs, and they're generally easy to grow, except cilantro. I usually use a seven-pod Classic for herbs.