The Amateur Farmer

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

The Lasagna Garden

Posted on by Jean Campbell

"I didn't know you could grow lasagna," my mother-in-law quipped as I showed her my latest experiment. She seemed as intrigued as I was when I first heard about this soil preparation technique. It's a composting method that eliminates the need to hoe or till. I'm going to give this a whirl! As I'm short on time and hoeing is not one of my favorites I really want to believe it's going to work. Here's the drill; designate a little patch of earth and begin covering it with compostable items.... Continue reading