(Photo credit: container-garden.info)
This art car is demonstrating “more parks less parking” but it is also an excellent example of creativity in container gardening.
Michael and I are so pleased to have a small patch of earth AND a landlord that doesn’t object to us digging it up for our tomato project. But eventually when we’re on the road in our tiny trailer (full time), we won’t be able to enjoy growing our own fresh food… or will we? I’ve been doing a bit of research and it looks like we’ve got a couple of practical options for bohemian travel gardening.
1. Mini-Gardening (growing vegetables in containers)
Container gardening is not something new. You can read plenty of books and articles on the subject, even this one from the 70s or this recent one from Mother Earth News.
Strawberries. (Photo credit: Desertification)
The containers should be light colored, up to 120 quarts capacity with plenty of air holes — the more the better — at least 1/2 inch in diameter. If hanging, the bottom should be lined with something like moss or newspaper to keep soil in. The soil mixture is important, so be sure to read up on it.
What to grow? The best vegetables to start out with in a mini garden are ones that take up little space, like carrots, radishes and lettuce. Also tomatoes and peppers can bear fruit over long periods of time. I want to try cucumbers, green onions, eggplant and herbs.
2. Sprouting
Sprouts are a great food item in the raw food diet. They are rich in digestible energy, vitamins, minerals, amino acids, proteins, beneficial enzymes and phytochemicals. Sprouting is a process of soaking, draining and rinsing the seeds to get them to sprout.
Sprouts (Photo credit: Apartment Therapy)
This great website sproutpeople.com gives sprouting advice for travelers. For example, they recommend the hemp sprouting bag for hikers — just attach the bag to the outside of your pack and you’re ready to go. There’s also the Easy Sprout, a plastic travel-size container with a snap-on lid.
Some seeds are easier to sprout than others. Here is a list of the ones that require the least amount of attention:
- Beans – Adzuki, Garbanzo, Lentil, Pea
- Grains – Wheat, Barley, Kamut, Buckwheat Groats, Oats
- Nuts and Seeds – Almonds, Pumpkins, Peanuts, Sunflower
I am a novice open for advice in gardening on the road. Are you a full time RVer or traveler who maintains a garden? Please write in!
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I highly recommend the “EasySprout”. I own three (that way I always have fresh sprouts coming) and I find lentils to be VERY forgiving… just a quick rinse in the morning, and again at night. I wash them out in between and rinse with a bit of bleach water once every few weeks and have had no problems. My first “EasySprout” is nearly 4 years old. Never a problem.
Thanks Anita — I bought one but still have yet to try it out!
much as I love the ez sprout as a concept, I believe in conserving coin. I’m trying to downsize my life. Eventually, I want the biggest thing in my life to be less than 100 square feet. My solution is old quart mayonnaise jars, canning rings, and I recently discovered a stainless steel window screen. The jars are plastic, and fairly resistant to casual damage that travel imposes. I just stuff a couple into a clean sock, and tie to my pack for backpack expeditions.
I recently acquired a dozen pint sized dark brown plastic sprouters from the local healthy supermarket, apparently they weren’t moving fast enough to be kept in stock. Microbrewed beers are the quickest movers…..