A Great Day at the Garden!

I took a chance and planted sprouts yesterday...

The vendor, a Future Farmer of America student, confidently told me that the frosts were over. I bought 8 Big Boy tomato sprouts, 2 jalapeno and 2 bell pepper sprouts.

Just before Christmas, I planted seeds I'd accumulated from various sources: tomatillo, carrot, sweet cream and okra. But, they didn't sprout because of cold weather.

So, yesterday I headed up to McRorie Community Garden in Gainesville, FL with my 12 sprouts.



You can see the assortment of little weeds and manure surrounding this happy Big Boy sprout. I sometimes feel like I spend more time planting and pulling weeds than eating harvest. The garden has its own rewards.



I've learned that many green plants are edible. Some taste better than others. Some don't taste good at all. Others are inedible. It's an education, but a worthwhile one. I've learned so much at workshops at Finca Mycol, the Hostel in the Forest, and Indigo Green Store.


It's rather funny that we chuckle at traditional knowledge. Remember the TV show "Green Acres"? I'll tell you what: when you're faced with an aggressive rooster and that task of putting him back in his coop is daunting, traditional "simple living" might not seem so easy.

I'm going on a bike ride with a group in a few minutes. Right afterward, I'll head over to the garden and see how my little sprouts fared in lasts night's cold.


This article originally appeared on Elephant Journal. Read more by clicking on the image below.