An Attempt to Grow Food

This spring, right before moving into together, my dedicated companion Jesse and I committed to an experiment we would attempt in solidarity: we would grow as much of our own food as possible- (limitations being space to grow, time, and energy!) Though we shared a plot in a community garden last season, this summer would be more serious: we expanded our growing space to include a back deck, sections of a communal backyard, and an additional plot in the garden.

Up until this weekend, we have spent at least 3 hours (more like 6) on Saturday or Sunday maintaining and nurturing the plants. This includes: watering (especially the containers because they dry out very fast), dealing with pests like aphids (which is typically taken care of by Jesse) and transplanting, seeding, and re-seeding.  Some of the more exciting projects we have going are potatoes in 5-gallon buckets, yellow squash and endless amounts of Swiss Chard. (Soon tomatoes will be abundant!) Our less successful attempts have been with peas (the slugs got to them before we did), spinach (it bolted when it got too hot) and Jesse's favorite- upside down tomato plants. 

I had hoped to keep a garden journal, starting in February when we ordered seeds but instead I decided to track just the results with a dinner log. Since June 20th (exactly one month ago), we have eaten 20 meals with fresh food from our garden (or on occasion from a friend or the farmer's market). Obviously the entire meal is not locally-grown or homemade but regardless, we feel successful thus far!

Some of our most interesting dinners have included: Pasta with Swiss Chard, tomatoes, garlic scapes, Italian Sausage, zucchini and onion; yogurt with foraged mulberries; a salad of peas, ricotta, baby greens, radishes, and cherry tomatoes; pasta with spinach, chickpeas, tomatoes, and garlic scapes and an arugula, peas, parsley, and mozzarella salad with a balsamic dressing.

If you want the recipes, let me know, most of it I adapt from cookbooks or create spontaneously so it won't be precise. 

I'll try to do another update next month when we may attempt some canning after I return from Virginia, where my family will help me practice the technique.