Day 5

The (what I assume to be) broccoli plants are pretty tall for seedlings, so I've moved them into the light. The sweet basil sprouts are just about forming their first leaves and their stalks are bending towards the light, which to me says "Please! Move us! We're ready!" I must remember to move them away from the window before it gets too cold this evening. The beans still have yet to sprout.

Yesterday I picked up some more essentials and some more seed. I now have some cilantro, green onion, and pea. I also picked up some pots and more soil, and a few more germination kits. The cilantro will be started right away, but the green onion should probably wait until end of May/June. Not sure about the pea. Time to read up!

Here's a pic of the basil, growin strong:

Day 4

Germination is going strong, the sweet basil sprouts are so cute and tiny, some of the sprouts in the other starter kit don't look so hot, but I'll give them another couple days before I make any moves. The bean plants still haven't sprouted. Another couple days and they'll be pic worthy!

Today I should be able to pick up the rest of the seeds/supplies I'll need to get the garden started outside. In addition to what I have started, I'm gonna be on the lookout for:

Cherry Tomatoes
Green Onion
Peas
Cilantro
and maybe, just maybe, some carrots.

From what I've read, carrots take a lot of room to grow, so hopefully I will be able find a baby or dwarf variety.

I'm getting more and more excited as each day passes.

Day 3

The tiniest little sprouts are starting to show their faces. There isn't much to look at yet, so I'll spare the pics until they get a little bigger.

In the mean time, I should start thinking about what else I want to grow this summer. Tomatoes, green onions, maybe lettuce or spinach? Ooh, maybe some peas? I should get on this soon, as prime sowing season will be over soon enough.

Another idea that I had last night was putting together a small-scale rain water harvesting system, in order to reduce my reliance on the city utility. We don't pay for our water access in this apartment building, however if I can save that little bit of extra energy that's required to pump water up to my unit just to put into the soil, then I will. Further, the water that falls from the sky is free for all, and there's no extra energy required to harvest and utilize it. Time to do some R&D.

Baby Steps and Sustainability

This is the first post, so I think it's important you know who I am and what I'm doing.

My name is Dave, and I want to grow my own food. Also, in doing so, I hope to convert to a vegetarian diet. Why? Health benefits, financial benefits, and also the satisfaction that I am closer to being self-sustaining. Also, I am a firm believer in supporting your local economy, rather than giving your money to foreign interests, who generally have complete disregard for the planet we live on.

Why the blog? I feel that if I'm able to keep a journal about my experiences, I'm more likely to keep it up. Also, if I get any readers who know things about gardening, they can leave tips and tricks I might not know about (hint, hint you reader folk)

On a whim a couple days ago, I decided to purchase some seeds, and some starter kits, in order to grow some vegetables for this coming summer. I shouldn't say it was on a whim, rather, I've had these crazy ideas to be self-sustaining, should some disaster occur that would preclude the use of money. Being able to generate ones own power, and food puts you in a pretty good position if anything terrible were to go down (nuclear holocaust, rising sea levels, alien invasion, 2012, whatever.) All the plants should fit on my 3rd floor balcony, which faces south, so it gets plenty of light in the summer.

These are my baby steps towards self-sustainability.

My grandmother has started a bean plant which she received for Christmas, then gave to me. That plant is starting to grow very strong. The plants that I've started are sweet basil, more bean plants, as well as broccoli. Following the directions on the packages, I planted them, and now am waiting for them to grow. I project that the first sprouts should appear around the 12th of March. When the sprouts start, I will include pictures.

That being said, there is much preparation I have to do. I have to get planters, and soil for the eventual transplants, a watering can, and gardening tools. I have decided against using fertilizers unless they come from a guaranteed natural, sustainable, local source. Also, I have to look at starting more seedlings, because the few plants I've started surely won't provide the harvests we (my partner and I) will need to feed ourselves. I myself eat enough for 2, so I could be looking at a lot.