Looking for an inexpensive activity you can do by yourself that’s more interesting and rewarding than solitaire or television? Here’s a simple and grounding way to a healthy and happy life.
"Micro" gardens are all the rage right now and for good reason. These tiny vegetable gardens are a great way to eat well, cheaply and get regular physical activity all at the same time. Not to mention the immense feeling of accomplishment and satisfaction one derives from eating fresh and nutritious produce grown by one's own hand.
There are actually a lot of reasons growing even some of your own food is good for you, the environment and the world around us.
When Charles Newbold patented the first cast-iron plow in 1797 it set our culture on track to remove the individual from the food production process for the first time in history. This incited the most powerful revolution in the way humans obtain produce since the Neolithic Revolution and changed a fundamental behavior that had served us for millennia.
Today the clout and greed of big business behind the food industry can leave us open to issues like food safety and unlabeled GMOs. Not to mention the impact on immigrant workers, especially women who are often subjected to unspeakable horors due to their low social status.
Then there is transportation, which does more than just drive up cost. Trucks crisscrossing the country pollute the environment, make it harder for local growers and cause produce to lose some of its nutritional value during the extended time it takes to get from farm to table.
Ready to start but don't have a yard? No problem, these gardens are springing up in the most unlikely of places, windowsills, back porches, roofs and balconies are all great locations, as long as there is sunshine and water accessible, everything else is good old fashioned ingenuity. So don’t be afraid to start small and grow with your garden.
Follow these helpful tips and links to get you started on your way!
Basics of Starting an Apartment Vegetable Garden | Urban Organic Gardener
http://www.urbanorganicgardener.com/basics-of-starting-an-apartment-vegetable-garden/
Vegetable Container Gardening For Beginners | The Spruce
https://www.thespruce.com/vegetable-container-gardening-for-beginners-848161
A Beginner's Guide to Container Vegetable Gardening | Spark People
http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/nutrition_articles.asp?id=1741
Kitchen Garden Checklist | Michelle Obama and the USDA’s People’s Garden Initiative.
https://letsmove.obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/sites/letsmove.gov/files/pdfs/LM%20Kitchen%20Garden%20Checklist_0.pdf
