The Amateur Farmer

Food is Free Project

Posted on by Jean Campbell

I found this video tooling around on Facebook. No pun intended! :) I've already got two palettes so this project is on for fall. I'll work on building up some great soil while we overwinter, and we'll see how we do in spring. This year's garden was a bit of a bust. I broke my leg late in May, and as I am the main gardener of the family, the beds went terribly untended. Yes, come harvest time the pickin's were quite slim. There I go punning again! Had I built beds like these, I may have fared... Continue reading

Urban Waste – A Veritable Gold Mine!

Posted on by Jean Campbell

I recently happened upon this jewel and became so excited with the ideas it sparked, I couldn't wait to share it. It's a segment entitled "How to Compost in an Apartment" from a show called Chai with Lakshmi. What an inspiration! I'm stunned I've never thought of or run into the concept of container composting! I've let my "live garbage" container stay on the counter long enough that I should have gotten the idea with what I eventually tossed in the bin, but alas, I did not. As a big... Continue reading

It’s Not Just Friday. It’s Pole Bean Day.

Posted on by Jean Campbell

I try to gang all my meetings and errands together. I pick a date to get them all done. I assume I will not be able to do regular work on that particular day. This was supposed to be that day. But my first meeting ran over, bumping my second meeting out of the running—it was a lunch with a new user's group, so no one would even miss me. Cool. My afternoon meeting was canceled due to illness, and so I found myself at home with nothing planned or pressing. Part of me really wanted to blow... Continue reading

More Kitchen Window Gardening

Posted on by Jean Campbell

I've been growing sprouts in a sprouting jar for years and learned of sprouting leafy vegetables in containers in the window last winter, but I never knew about this until I caught it on Pinterest a couple of weeks ago. I couldn't wait to try it out. There are a number of varieties of vegetables that will continue to grow even after you've devoured most of what you brought home in your grocery bag. Who knew? It's a great way to stretch food dollars and get the satisfaction of micro-farming... Continue reading