I wouldn't use perlite. It floats and would get nasty quickly. Plus being white, you would see it getting nasty quicker. I would use clay pots with the open end up and put a wire grid over them. The egg crate would work but i think it is too brittle/fragile. Drop one pot on it and you'll be replacing it. Clay pots will wick up moisture, they're cheap and easier to clean, and readily available. With the open ends pointed up, any air flow over the large surface area will boost humidity better, I suspect. I would use something cheap but durable for the walls, paint them with white marine epoxy paint, and affix some plastic coated hardware cloth or other type of wire grid over the panels. That will provide endless spots to hang mounts which you will undoubtedly, eventually, acquire in large numbers. You can also use the wire to hang additional lights or fans, or to hang pots higher up so they're closer to the lights, if needed. It will allow you to use your vertical space. Ventilation will be very important, especially if you have very cool and humid conditions, as most basements would. Sounds like a fun project. Post pics when applicable, please. -MB

Rhizo is correct. Many culinary herbs languish in indoor conditions. There are many, MANY posts and threads here with information on people wanting to grow herbs indoors and their trials and tribulations. Over the last year, other than posts on "why my basil isn't growing," people wanting to grow herbs indoors and their questions about it is some of the most popular posts we see here. Add to that the difficulty and slowness of some herb seed germination as well as the often tiny seeds and herb seed is not the easiest for kids. That said, I applaud any efforts to get kids growing. Too many are almost permanently plugged into electronics and separated from growing things and the natural world. I would suggest having an indoor garden with houseplants that are known to tolerate indoor conditions. There are many that can be started from cuttings (that maybe even the kids can bring in) so there is still a lesson to be had there. And late next winter have the kids start vegetable seeds or some of the easy culinary herbs like basil for an outdoor garden plot or an outdoor container garden. More schools are getting kids involved in school vegetable gardens. There are so many great benefits to these programs and so much to learn about growing, plants, patience, healthy eating, and having something give back the effort put into it. I included a link to a google search for seed starting with kids. Good luck and let us know what you end up doing and how it works out! FataMorgana Here is a link that might be useful: Google - Indoor Seed Starting for Kids

OMG - that is very cute - very expensive too! But as with all innovations, over time costs should come down. I will promote this cute guy for sure. The inventor needs to get the prices down so it is commercially viable - what a great office xmas gift. Here is a link that might be useful: VerticalGardenOnline.com

Here's the light I'm using for my towers. I'm hanging it longways, parallel to the towers. If I hang it about a foot away from the towers it'll cover an area about two feet wide by 4 feet tall. Most of the time, I don't turn on the extra red LEDs and it uses about 210 watts. Even without the extra red LEDs on, I sometimes have to move it farther away from the plants so they don't get too much light. http://www.mars-hydro.com/reflector-led-grow-light-144-5w.html