The outdoor season is winding down, but that doesn't mean your growing has to stop. Autumn is one of the best times to get a head start indoors — and with the right setup, you can be harvesting fresh produce through winter and have strong, healthy plants ready well ahead of next spring.
Here's what to start propagating indoors right now, and how to do it properly.
Why Start Indoors in Autumn?
Growing indoors gives you full control over temperature, light, and humidity — the three things that autumn and winter strip away outside. With a propagator, a decent grow light, and the right nutrients, you can extend your growing season by months and get a serious head start on spring.
What to Propagate Now
Salad Leaves & Microgreens
The fastest return you'll get indoors. Microgreens can be ready to eat in 7–14 days, and cut-and-come-again salad leaves like rocket, mizuna, and baby spinach can be cropped within 3–4 weeks. These need very little space, minimal nutrients, and just a windowsill or a small grow light. Perfect for getting started — the Garland Micro Greens Tray & Reservoir Complete Set is ideal for this.
Herbs
Basil, coriander, parsley, and chives all do well indoors through autumn and winter. Sow direct into small pots, keep them warm (18–22°C is ideal), and they'll establish quickly. Basil in particular struggles outdoors once temperatures drop below 10°C, so bringing it inside now extends its life significantly.
Chillies
If you want to grow chillies next year — especially slower varieties like Habanero or Scotch Bonnet — now is the time to start. They have a long growing season and benefit enormously from an early indoor start. Sow now, keep them warm, and they'll be well-established by the time they're ready to go outside next summer.
Spring Onions & Radishes
Both are fast-growing and well-suited to indoor container growing. Spring onions can be harvested in 6–8 weeks; radishes even faster. Great for filling space in a propagation setup while slower crops get established.
Overwintering Tomato Cuttings
If you had a particularly good outdoor tomato variety this year, you can take cuttings now and overwinter them indoors rather than starting from seed next spring. Take a healthy side shoot, root it in water or a propagation medium, and keep it under a grow light through winter. You'll have a mature, productive plant months ahead of seed-grown ones.
What You Need to Get Started
A Propagator
A heated propagator gives you the consistent bottom heat that seeds and cuttings need to germinate and root reliably. A windowsill propagator like the Garland Three Top Windowsill Propagator is a great entry point, or step up to a Garden HighPro Probox Propagator Tent if you're running larger volumes. Unheated propagators work, but in a cool room in autumn, germination will be slower and patchier.
A Grow Light
This is non-negotiable if you're not in a south-facing room with strong natural light. Autumn and winter daylight in the UK is too short and too weak for most crops. The SunBlaster LED Propagation Grow Light is ideal for seedlings and cuttings, or pair it with the Garland Grow Light Garden Kit for a compact all-in-one windowsill setup.
A Good Propagation Mix
Use a fine, low-nutrient propagation compost or a coco-based propagation medium. Seedlings and cuttings don't need strong feeding straight away — focus on root development first, then introduce a gentle seedling nutrient once the first true leaves appear.
Temperature
Most seeds germinate best at 18–25°C. Keep your propagation area away from cold windowsills and draughts. A heated propagator on a shelf under a grow light is the ideal setup.
When to Start Feeding
Hold off on nutrients until seedlings have their first set of true leaves (not the seed leaves). At that point, introduce a gentle, balanced seedling nutrient at a low dose and build up gradually as the plant develops. CANNA Start is purpose-built for this stage — it's formulated specifically for seedlings and cuttings and won't overwhelm young roots. For an extra rooting boost, Shogun Start is a great addition alongside it.
The Bigger Picture
Starting indoors in autumn isn't just about keeping busy through winter — it's about compressing your growing season and arriving at spring with plants that are weeks or months ahead of where they'd be if you started from scratch in March. The investment in a basic indoor setup pays back quickly in stronger plants, earlier crops, and more control over your grow.
Ready to set up your indoor propagation space? Browse our full range of propagators, grow lights, and seedling nutrients — everything you need to keep growing all year round.