So the cost of everything is rising, and trains are derailing everywhere, causing food and water to literally be contaminated. It’s pretty frightening. We won’t have healthy food in a couple of years.
How the HELL do you survive that? Do you just give up? Or do you prepare?
Planting things have been part of our lives since we stood up one day and decided we didn’t want to travel to go eat. But high school doesn’t teach much about gardening, which seems expensive. Sometimes buying all the essentials for a garden is costly, especially if you don’t know what you are doing. Vegetables don’t survive on essays or Algebra, so using what we learned in school isn’t help. Still, you got to eat, and vegetables are getting expensive at the grocery store.
You need food and a garden, but you don’t have any money or know what to do.
You gotta make a punk garden.
If the fear of food isn’t an issue because you know your parent’s money will protect you, read this article for fun gardening techniques. However, if you’re like the rest of us, you must know how to grow and grow for cheap.
However, the term “poor” tends to be subjective for some people, so I will go down a list. Some people say they don’t have any money, and other people legit don’t have any money. So let’s cover all the bases.
An electronic gardening set is an easiest but costliest way to make a garden. It’s small (easily containable in an apartment or home), has the necessary equipment to garden, and is simple (fill it with water and let it grow). But the major problem is that it’s also expensive. While spending $60-$600 might seem reasonable initially, most people don’t have that money quickly, so avoiding unhealthy food might be more accessible. On the other hand, these machines provide the soil and the resources to grow, making it easy for those utterly clueless about gardening. Some people can excuse the price, so I’m putting this up here.
Potted plants come next. Whether it be old plastic jugs, you cut holes in or pots for plants, these come in various prices and sizes for everyone. Price isn’t an issue because you can put a hole in the bottom.*
*Pots need a hole in the bottom. If you don’t have anywhere for the water to go, you’ll have moldy mud.
With pots, accessibility comes from the creative mind. I have used old plastic pots that I have previously bought plants. I cut holes into actual plastic jars. I used terracotta pots given to me by family members who didn’t want them. When you genuinely want something, you will get it. As for soil, I have usually bought cheap dirt from Target or Home Depot, mostly because I can’t tell the difference between what works and what doesn’t. There might be a reason for the more expensive kind, but I haven’t learned that.
One rule of thumb is to stay away from any Monsanto products. But, unfortunately, Miracle Grow is owned by Monsanto, and even if there isn’t any scientific reasoning not to buy it, I just don’t trust that bitch.
I could be better when it comes to planting expertise. There is a guy on TikTok named Marcus who is significantly better, but I have a couple of suggestions…
1. Lettuce packets are your best friend. They are easy to grow and maintain, and you can eat them for almost everything. You don’t need to buy a lettuce plant. A packet of lettuce seeds will do the trick. Throw them in potted pots filled with soil and water them every other day. Eventually, you’ll see little sprouts. Leave the pot under some sun to give it some warmth. This will become your easiest plant to grow.
2. Squash is another great bet. Either buy it as a plant or grow it from seeds. These little fellas will produce the right amount of food. Grow this out on a balcony or in your backyard. Also, zucchinis weirdly are a great cat treat.
3. Tomatoes are easy to grow but hard to maintain. I have found that once they create a tomato, they just die. I don’t want anyone to die.
4. Potatoes are the best to grow in a pot as well. I have found that they are most successful growing inside, but they are simple to grow from potatoes that sprout that you forget to eat. Put them in water, and they will begin to sprout.
5. Lentils. Just throw them on the ground and water them every other day. They bring nitrogen into the soil, so they help your dirt stay healthy.
When you have pots and plants, you can test and see what will work and what won’t. So buy those cheap seed packets, and take up a friend’s propagation. Be open to everything because if you mess up, then you just mess up, it won’t cost you much, and you will learn. In the end, you’ll have a jungle you can call home. It’ll be lovely.
The last solution is the backyard. The backyard offers way more opportunities than one would realize. Know that your backyard doesn’t have to stay confined to just grass but can offer more opportunity and growth for food. If you want the green grass put clover in the ground instead (way healthier for the soil). Also, know that the backyard doesn’t have to stay confined to the backyard. A flat piece of land isn’t just a flat piece but an area that can grow high. Stack pots on discarded bookshelves and use old dressers as a potted material. Everything you hold dear can be doubled for your pleasure. Most people won’t be able to utilize your backyard, so celebrate your privilege. You have a more enormous amount of square feet for food, so use it to your best.
The punk mentality and sensibility have always utilized the lack of money and care from society as their own means of personalized growth. However, a community doesn’t have to be limited based on what we can afford, and customized change doesn’t have to rely solely on education. As the country and world fail us, utilize your punk creativity to create something sustainable. Break barriers of organic and build a food kingdom of your own domain.
