Super Eco

Photo credit: mimbrava, flickr

Tired of eating mealy tomatoes and bitter tasting carrots? Not always willing to pay a premium for organic veggies at the market? Or maybe you've just heard one too many stories about pesticides, or less nutrition in today's veggies.

The time to start a garden is now.

But what if the only thing you've ever grown is a Chia pet and a bowl full of sea monkeys? Not to worry, we can take this thing a bit at a time, break it down ("bird by bird" as Anne Lamott says) so it is easy enough for even the most alienated from nature among us.  

A great place to start is  "Square Foot Gardening" by Mel Bartholomew which encourages planting vegetables in wood or brick garden boxes for easy maintenance and care. This only works if you're assured the materials used to make your box won't leach nasties into your soil. On the upside, this container method would work well in small spaces, such as balconies, patios, and porches. 

Another great source of information on starting gardens comes from our very own Flickr group and Twitter followers.

Try these steps to get started:

1. Select your site - The square foot gardening guru recommends finding a site that gets 6-8 hours of sun daily.  It should also be away from trees and shrubs, and easily viewable from your house. Flickr's Mimbrava plants herbs and tomatoes in her driveway.

2. Prep the soil - Twitter follower sswayze suggests checking soil pH to make sure it's in the right range for plants to grow. If you use the square foot gardening method, you don't need to worry about potential soil contaminants because you'll be creating your own soil mixture and planting your veggies in a box. Twitterer eco_jo recommends using a rainbarrel to collect the water needed for your garden (you can also learn how-to build your own rainbarrel).

3. Plan your vegetables - Using the start small method, I'm going to plant 3 large veggies, 3 medium veggies, and 10 small ones. Likely these will include broccoli, lettuce, peppers, beans, spinach, radish, onions, and carrots. Flickr's Ms. Lume points out that planting a variety of flowers to attract diverse insects which in turn can help your plants thrive. PJ McAdie warns that raspberry bushes are messy but the berries are delectable.

4. Buy your seeds - From our earlier how-to, here are some of the many great sources for organic and heirloom seeds: Seeds of Change, Johnny's, Territorial Seeds, organic seed from Park seed, High Mowing Organic Seeds. 

5. Start seeds - Starting seeds allows gardening to be a year -round activity. Flickr's VeroC starts her seeds indoors. As does Lucy (see her how-to about starting seeds).  

No energy, time, or space to plant a garden this year? Avail yourself of Super Eco's great tips for picking superior produce.