If you have a green thumb and enjoy spending time in your garden, count yourself lucky. It's been shown that gardening has many positive health benefits, from elevating your mood to encouraging physical activity. Regularly participating in the activity may even help you live longer. When winter arrives, you may think that your gardening days for the year are done. However, with some advanced preparation and a small investment in the right materials, you can actually continue your hobby throughout the darkest and coldest days.

Set Up Your Garage for Indoor Gardening

Head to a home and garden store like Home Depot to get all the supplies you need to create a green oasis in your garage. Buy pots and planters, and bags of soil. Next, choose seeds or bulbs that are suited to cooler weather, such as cape daisies or snapdragons. Steer clear of tropical plants that like it hot. Make sure to grab some mulch as well: Sprinkle it on top of the earth after planting and it will keep the soil moist despite the dry winter air. You can even create your own organic compost, which will create heat as it breaks down.

Equip Yourself for Indoor Work

While at Home Depot, outfit yourself with indoor gardening gear. For example, you won’t be using a big shovel when you’re working with the limited surface area of a pot or planter; so, get yourself a small hand trowel instead. Additionally, keep in mind that the hard floor of a garage (likely made of concrete) will be tougher on the knees than the soft earth outside. Also, grab yourself some gardening pads to protect your knees.

In Lieu of a Garage, Build a Garden Shed

If you don’t have a garage but have space on your property, have a shed installed to house your indoor gardening. When choosing the materials, steel and wood are two popular options to consider. You may prefer wood because of its natural aesthetic but beware that it won’t hold up as well against the elements and will cost more to maintain. Steel is less aesthetically appealing (and easier to break into) but it’s durable in snow, rain, and cold.

Heat and Light Your Indoor Gardening Space Appropriately

Whether it’s a garden shed or a garage, your indoor gardening space will require some additional heating if plants are to survive. This will also make the time you spend there to care for them more pleasant for you! A simple space heater can do the trick. To keep plants thriving indoors, you also need to replace the light they normally would get from the sun outdoors. LED grow lights are ideal, as they are efficient and earth-friendly. You can grow everything from flowering houseplants to vegetables using these.

Prepare Your Outdoor Garden for the Cold

Although your focus may be on your indoor garden throughout the winter, don’t neglect your outdoor plants completely. Taking steps to prepare your lawn for winter can ensure green and lush growth come spring. Apply a slow-release fertilizer that is rich in nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium. These are the key ingredients needed to assure healthy roots that will keep grass alive until the temperatures rise. Also, aerate the lawn before fertilizing; creating holes in the earth’s surface lets nutrients penetrate to the roots more easily.

With these tricks and tools, you will be able to enjoy your garden all winter long. Come spring, you can move your indoor pots and planters outside into the sun. Your garage or garden shed can still prove useful when it’s warm out as a storage space. And when the temperatures drop again, you’ll already have the materials you need for an indoor oasis.

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