Change of Plans

The height of our Summer garden.

The calendar suddenly says September, and that means it has been a whole year since we started this life altering project. In that time we've gotten to enjoy not only the many varieties of veggies that have graced our plates, but the intangible experiences of collaborating with some truly wonderful people and, of course, sowing, sprouting, loving, (writing about) and admiring a whole bunch of amazing plant friends. But we have some news that, depending on your opinion of change, may or may not sound so good to you.

At the remembered recommendation of our good friend and facilitator, Cheryl, that we give this project a year and see where we stand, we vacillated back and forth about whether or not to continue utilizing the space that has been so graciously lent to us and our growing purposes. We decided, after much deliberation, to conclude that part of our journey, and will no longer be growing our greens (and reds and yellows and aubergines) in those wonderful borrowed backyard beds.

Does this mean we will stop growing? Not a chance. Will we still grow food? Um...YEAH! 

In prior posts, I have mentioned that our apartment has a lovely, west facing balcony. Since our attentions had been so fondly focused on our garden space down the street, we found that the plants living just under our noses suffered from a certain degree of neglect, leaving us feeling like bad parents playing favorites. 

But never fear, we have a plan! 

For the garden grounds, we'll soon be clearing out the last of the Summer spring, and will prepare it for whatever its future may be. For one of the tiers, we sowed sage, rosemary, and thyme in trays just yesterday to be transplanted in a month or so (no parsley, for all you Simon & Garfunkel fans, because it is only an annual, and not on the hardy list). We chose those particular herbs for their water-wise, low maintenance and aromatic ways as a special gift to the home owner to show our appreciation for his year of generosity.

For our home space, we're going big. Well, as big as our suspended rectangle will allow, but you can be sure we're going to get creative. 

Have we mentioned the Growvo Box before? The grow box we designed with my dad for growing plants in small spaces? It, and my dad, are geniuses. What is so special about the boxes? Let me count the ways...

A sprouting "G-2"

• They're self contained, so there's no overflow when watering.
• They are water and temperature efficient, with minimal evaporation.
• Only need to be watered, at most, once a week because of the rad osmotic system my dad designed.
• They are so clean, and are easy to wipe down if necessary. 
• Great for growing smaller plants (herbs, lettuce, etc) in minimal space.
• Custom fit to suit any space challenges :)

Ok, so now, all of sudden, I'm selling something. How did that happen? Well, actually, we worked on this project in the Spring when we were thinking about our own limited growing space, and have since been doing a little research and development to see if this is something others could possibly benefit from. We concluded that anything that the Growvo box works, and that anything that facilitates growth must be a good thing and should, therefore, be shared.

We even made one for our friends to try out, Samara and Sonny, the chefs at Planet Earth Eco Cafe in Hermosa and at the Wolfgang Puck restaurant at the Hotel Bel Air, respectively. Samara is swearing by it after growing their Mesclun salad mix off the rail of their west facing balcony in Hermosa, and Sonny has requested a second one to hang next to their first. They were both impressed at the fact that while they were away from home for a few days, the greens in their "G-2" Box didn't look like they missed them in the least, while their others in regular planters looked mournful and wilty. Poor things. 

Anyway, let us know if you're interested and we'll chat sizes and and what it'll cost ya. Note that we couldn't find any of the pictures of our full grown greens in the Growvo boxes to share, but I assure you that grow they did!

G-1 affixed to our balcony railing, and our lovely apartment view :)

So, that is part of our plan to maximize our apartment growth potential. We started some new seeds in our "G-2" Box yesterday, and are looking forward to meeting our new edible friends Pac Choy, Asian Mesclun salad mix, and Chives. When it gets a little cooler, we're going to find some space to plant Butter Lettuce, good ol' Golden Beets, Brussels Sprouts and more Red Barron onions like last year.

Growing is just great, and I, for one, am ready for this next phase of homegrown fun.