Tom Carey: No garden? No problem

Intuition works in strange and mysterious ways. It is that little voice lurking, sometimes drowned out, by the external chaos or internal static occluding our minds. Easily perceived in hindsight, that feeling of what should be done is frequently overridden by the march of routine processes already in motion. We do not get to play with our instincts very often. This can be manifest in our desire to grow just a bit of our own food. Growing a few simple crops, and abiding by the claim to eat fresh from our gardens, is seeded in the back of all of our minds.

Our eating habits, many times leading to questionable outcomes, need to be questioned. Pondering what sustenance we put into our bodies can lead to clarity of choice. I am heartened when guests to my garden naturally trend towards good decisions on what is best to eat. Concurrently, I am often disappointed when it is pronounced that high hopes are dashed because of a lack of growing space or functional knowledge.

Keep it simple, sweetie; grow for the green leaf, not the penultimate fruit, tuber or seed production. Garlic chive (Allium tuberosum) is a perennial herb that is merely trimmed, not pulled from the soil. Grown in any sized container using off the shelf potting soil, garlic chives will survive our summer weather provided some shade in the afternoon and our winters with a beach towel as cover for frost protection. Drought tolerant, they will still be waiting for you after the neglect of a week’s vacation.

Everyone loves basil (Ocimum basilicum). Starting with annual plants available in many grocery store produce sections, basil is a practical crop for flavoring up bottled tomato sauce, canned soup or boxed pasta. Pinching leaves encourages even more production. Basil’s tender growth lends itself to summer proliferation, and a stash for winter is easily frozen for later use.

French sorrel (Rumex acetosa) is a very robust plant, but the leaves are easily damaged during handling; you will rarely find it available in the retail distribution channels. Its tangy surprise leads to perked-up flavors in salads, sauces and soups. I utilize sorrel for hand-to-mouth grazing, conveniently abating hunger pangs until the next work break.

Any downtown condo balcony or heavily shaded suburban lot can be home to an infinitely greater food production facility than doing nothing at all. And think of the self-esteem and bragging rights when claims of being even partially food independent can be proffered. It does not take much to get started. (I offer free tours every Friday and Saturday at noon.)

Tom Carey is the owner of Sundew Gardens, a you-pick gardening business in Oviedo. Visit the Sundew Gardens Facebook page and e-mail him at [email protected]