Yippee, it’s gardening season! Always experimenting, we’ve graduated some crops from garden beds to Grow Bags:
- Easy to plant, maintain, harvest.
- Super for new gardeners and small spaces.
- Carrots, cylindra beets, parsnips grow straight; potatoes are a blast to harvest.
- Great for herbs, flowers, veggies (some need support), companion planting.
- No damage from grubs, slugs, voles.
- Filled bags are portable, albeit heavy when moist – handles help.
- Extra-large bags provide depth and water retention
- Finally available as fully compostable jute!
- Fabric breathes, so soil doesn’t overheat or get soggy.
- Air-pruning keeps roots from circling.
- Collapsible for easy storing – after cleaning!
Please note:
- Use soil-less growing mix, not regular dirt/garden soil, preferably without peat moss.
- Significant/consistent irrigation needed; evaporation and leakage deplete moisture (thirsty plants get stressed, making them susceptible to pests, diseases, wilting) – mulch helps (#10).
- Slow-release fertilizer and amendments replenish nutrients.
- Most bags are polypropylene blends, not compostable.
- Beware of bottom deterioration.
Reuse “soil” with nutrient replenishment, add to compost, or spread atop gardens.
Planetarily,
Laura & Gil
Our friends Laura & Gil Richardson are, in their own words, “imperfect” but they are much further down this Planetarian path than anyone I know. They are a treasure trove of sustainable living inspiration and we’ve asked them to share one simple swap per week that they’ve made (and the products they love) in hopes it might inspire you to make them, too.
