While some of us are growing impatient as stay-at-home orders linger on, others are growing impatiens—warm-weather flowers that bloom in bright red, purple, and pink. And home chefs are planting seeds or potting food scraps they hope turn into scallions, cilantro, or garlic chives.

Gardening fever is real, says Josh Singer, a community gardening specialist with the District’s Department of Parks and Recreation. Though the city’s community gardens remain open, DPR has converted all its gardening classes to recorded webinars that anyone can watch live or refer to later—for free. (Advance registration is required.) More than 20 classes are scheduled from now through the end of July, and more will be added all summer, Singer says. Topics include growing mushrooms in the city and beekeeping basics.

In late March, DPR hosted its first online Urban Grower course, “and we had nearly 2,000 people sign up within the first three days,” Singer says. “We’ve never had anything close to that amount of interest. I think it’s a combination of the need to build a strong local food system during a crisis, the need to decrease grocery store trips during social distancing, and just the need to stay sane during quarantine.”

Of course, not everyone has a backyard or access to outdoor gardening space. On Thursday, Neil Hoffman, a scientist who’s been gardening seriously for nearly a decade, will teach a webinar on growing herbs and greens indoors.

During his time in D.C., Hoffman, who now lives in Richmond, used a community garden plot to grow nearly all the vegetables his family consumed in a year. “I missed growing my own vegetables, so I thought I’d try growing some lettuce or greens in my basement,” he says. “That has worked amazingly.”

Even if you do have outdoor space, there’s reason to give indoor gardening a go. Hoffman has been surprised to find that the vegetables he grows indoors are tastier than those he grew outside. Outdoors plants tend to be more stressed, he says, and when they’re stressed they become less palatable.

“The plants are just so tender, and so delicious,” he says. “I started because I wanted to satisfy my desire to grow things, and I love plants, but it was an unexpected benefit that the quality would be so much better than anything I grew outdoors. It really is something else.”

Ahead of his Thursday class, Hoffman shared five tips for those new to indoor gardening.

Try a hydroponics system.

Some people choose to grow indoor plants in soil, but Hoffman prefers Kratky hydroponics. It’s essentially a way to garden without soil, and the benefits include faster plant growth and a smaller chance of disease. During his webinar on Thursday, Hoffman will explain, in detail, how to make the system work inside your home.

To get started, you’ll need an empty container; Hoffman likes the round plastic tubs tofu comes in at Asian markets. Stackable containers are ideal for people in apartments who need to conserve space; otherwise, “it’s going to become overwhelming.” Additional supplies include net pots, rockwool cubes, and artificial lighting.

“They call it ‘set it and forget it,’ ” he says, because once you’re set up, tending your garden is relatively low-maintenance.

Get creative about space.

Hoffman harvests about 16 plants a week in his basement, and they each take six weeks to grow. That means he’s housing 96 plants at any given time. He uses a wire Metro shelving unit that has four shelves, with a total footprint of about 8 square feet. He attaches LED lights to the top of each shelf that shine on the plants below.

“You can set [your indoor garden] up anywhere,” Hoffman says. Ideally, it might be near a water source, and in close proximity to an electrical unit so you can plug in lights. If you have sunshine coming in, like from a window, that’s great, but “you don’t really need any [natural] light,” he says. “You could put it in the closet.”

Take care of your seeds.

If you buy a packet of, say, 250 seeds, you’ll have a lot leftover. Hoffman is still using seeds from when he started his community garden plot in D.C. seven years ago. “I think a lot of people are very wasteful when it comes to seeds,” he says. “They can actually last a long time. You need to take care of them.”

The best way to preserve seeds is to keep them cold; they won’t survive warm temperatures or humidity. Hoffman pours his into an airtight container, adds a desiccant, and stores them in the refrigerator.

Experiment with various herbs and greens.

Hoffman has tried growing all kinds of greens inside. He’s had the best luck with lettuce and Asian greens, like mizuna, bok choy, and tatsoi. He also grows herbs, such as basil, sage, and dill. Micro greens work well, too.

He wasn’t wild about the turnips, rosemary, or mustard greens he grew indoors, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be—the only way to find out is to try.

DPR’s Advanced Urban Grower Webinar Series lasts through July 30. Advance registration required. FREE