We humans have not been good stewards of the environment and tend to destroy the local ecology wherever we thrive from the extinction of large game animals in the Pleistocene to contemporary global warming.
Agribusiness is a major contributor to global warming and chemical pollution. If we were to grow some of our own food using organic methods, we could minimize the ecological damage. Growing food in a small urban space is appealing to the environmentalist in all of us, not to mention the inner economist. But is it practical? I was curious enough to try it out and report my results.
I have to confess that I did close to zero research before starting which allowed me to make some interesting discoveries. Having grown up on a farm, in Ireland, I imagined that I knew enough of the basics to make it work.
To begin, I fenced off a 100 square yard space with old fencing. I selected a south-facing slope with good sun and drainage. A space for composting grass, leaves, and other organic material was fenced on three sides in a secluded spot with some sun. Next, I commandeered a large garbage pail to collect rainwater for irrigation.
With the basic engineering complete, I dug up the lawn grass with a shovel employing a mattock occasionally to dig out tree roots.
By the time spring rolled around, the sod was well rotted and I could begin tilling (with a bull rake) and applying the compost manure that had been accumulating. Now I could plant and observe the fruits of my toil.
Initially, I was interested in growing crops familiar from childhood but eventually shifted to vegetables that worked better in Alabama. My first crop was sugar peas and these turned out to be a great success. Peas are an excellent crop for organic gardens because they beef up nitrogen in the soil.
The potato crop was a big disappointment. There was so much rain that most of the seed rotted in the ground. Those that survived yielded poorly. I assumed the problem was a lack of lime and remedied this later to good effect (my main deviation from organic practice).
Potatoes were not the only failure. My Brussels sprouts (a great family favorite) looked great and grew like beanstalks. The problem was that instead of bunching up into sprouts, they grew out like collard greens in response to the summer heat. Not knowing, how best to cook them I pulled them up and tossed them on the compost heap.
The cabbage was a real challenge as a magnet for every kind of insect. Picking off the caterpillars and cabbage worms by hand while being feasted on by mosquitoes is not for the faint of heart. Subsequently, I defeated the bugs by growing over winter. The cabbage thanked me by promptly going to seed before forming heads. I quit.
The zucchini looked great as well with their extravagantly large leaves and their exotic yellow flowers that opened up in the mornings. Problem was that they bore almost no fruit. On doing a little research, I discovered that this is possibly an effect of the declining number of bees. Artificial pollination with an artist's brush was little help. So much for sex with plants.
Some of the successes were endless lettuce that tasted very good and a supply of tomatoes and cucumbers throughout the summer. Green and red bell peppers were also very good but hard to grow from seed.
The okra crop grown after the peas was spectacular, soaring 10 feet into the air and menacing the neighborhood after the manner of a horror movie. It's mutant fruit fills the bottom of my freezer.
Return on investment
I spent about $20 on seeds and grew about $300 worth of vegetables at retail prices. Just as well the labor, like the water, fertilizer, and land, were free!
Intangible benefits
I created a magical space untroubled by care. My friends were initially touched by gifts that I had grown with the sweat of my brow, then alarmed by nature's bounty. Passersby expressed amazement. I have not saved the planet but I made a tiny piece of it better thus reversing the history of our species. Happy Earth Day.
