You need zero square feet to grow food.
I frequently nag friends, family, and strangers to start gardening. โIโd love to have a garden, but I donโt have a yardโ is by far the most common excuse I hear. No more! Here are some of my favorite DIY designs for growing food that require not even an inch of lawn. With a bit of ingenuity and elbow grease, you can even move them between apartments.
Self-Irrigating Planters
With a water chamber below the plants, sub-irrigated planters (SIPs) allow gardeners toย fill their water reservoirย once every week, rather than having to water their plants every day. One of the most popular commercial versions is the Earthbox, and their instruction manual (PDF) contains useful planting advice.ย At a fifth of the cost, you can utilize a 5-gallon bucket to get the same results with Dearthbox:
As you scale up your SIPs, Earthtainer providesย in-depth instructions (PDF) for creating a larger-scale setupย that’s particularly tomato-friendly:
In addition to looking great, this systemย provides for aย larger reservoir that can be shared among multiple SIPs:
Vertical Pockets
A pocket made out of semi-porous material is a good home for a plant: water and air can reach the roots. Add some waterproofย fabric as a shell and youโve got an indoor-friendly, wall-mounted home for a variety of smaller edibles. This can be as simple as a repurposed shoe organizer:
For a more industrial aesthetic, pallets are plentiful and free:
Love the lookย of Wo0lly Buddy garden pockets, but uncomfortable with the price? These DIY pockets look at least as good:
Sprouts
In a hotelย or some other extremely temporary situation? Seeds become delicious, nutritious sprouts in as little as two days. Mung bean seeds, water, and a container with holes are all you need forย a basic system:
Here’s a cheatsheet toย sprouting a variety of edibles (PDF).
Get Growing!
Producing even a salad’s worthย of your own food is an incredibly rewarding experience. Once you get started, you may quickly find yourself contemplating milling your ownย grains and capturingย rainwater. It’s a slippery slope to sustainable urban farming,ย and baby steps are easy to take. Why not get started today?
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