Everything You Need to Know About How to Grow Indoor Grass

Out of all the cool houseplants, useful herbs, and indoor trees available, grass isn’t usually the first thing that comes to mind when you’re looking to fill your indoor spaces with living greenery. But even though this type of plant is usually related to backyards and landscaping, grass makes for a great indoor container garden option that can be both decorative and useful and is quite easy to grow.

Whether it’s grown for pets or harvested to make things like green juice, there are lots of uses for indoor grass. If having a mini lawn inside your home piqued your interest, skip the pothos and set down that fiddle leaf fig, and read on to find out how to grow indoor grass. 

There are a wide range of indoor grass varieties, so choosing one that fits best with your home’s environment and the purpose you’re interested in is best. Some of the more popular varieties include wheatgrass, ryegrass, fescues, and pet grass mixes—all of which have a fairly easy time sprouting and growing indoors.

Wheatgrass is great for health food fanatics, pet mixes serve owners of four-legged friends well, and fescues are great for ornamental purposes.

Most varieties of indoor grass need quite a bit of light and do best if they’re sat on a windowsill or in a room that offers plenty of sunshine. If your home doesn’t fare well in the natural light department, artificial light from a growing lamp can be equally as helpful.

Shallow containers that drain well are ideal homes for indoor grass. While grass prefers moist soil, sitting in water can hinder its growth and lead to root rot, so it’s important that water can nourish it and then easily pass through.

• Grass seed of your choosing

• Shallow container with drainage holes

• Spritzing / misting bottle

• Soil (topsoil or potting soil will do the trick)

• Gravel or pebbles

1. Find a suitable shallow container with proper drainage. This can be anything from a rectangular galvanized metal planter to a plastic tub to a terracotta pot, as long as it’s not too deep or lacking holes. If there’s a planter you want to use that doesn’t have good drainage, gravel and pebbles can help. 

2. Layer the bottom of the container with about a ½ inch to 1 inch of gravel or small pebbles to assist with water drainage. Cover the pebbles with a couple of inches of potting soil.

3. Sprinkle your soil with the grass seeds. Once you’ve finished, gently press the seeds lightly into the dirt with your fingers.

4. Use your misting bottle to lightly water the seeds until the soil is damp. After watering, place your planter in a location with plenty of light and get ready for your grass to grow!

You should mist your seeds every other day and should begin seeing growth within a week, or in some cases, within a couple of days. Once the blades reach an inch or so in height, water lightly and evenly every few days, ensuring the soil is damp.

After your grass really starts to grow, you can trim the tops of the blades with scissors as needed. This step is optional and depends on whether you prefer a natural, free-form tuft or not. Because blades can grow at different rates, this will keep things uniform and clean-cut.

You’ll also want to trim it down to about a ½ inch above the top of the soil if you choose to harvest your grass for health food uses. With weekly maintenance, your grass could last anywhere from several weeks to several months.