Grow your own food (and eat it, too)!

So, this is the start of the Winkle Garden 2010! I know - it doesn’t look like much currently, but I have big expectations. The two plants on the far end are tomato plants (Roma and Hybrid Beefeater, I believe - I’m not really great with remembering the exact names of the veggies I plant!). Next to the tomatoes, I’ve planted some romaine lettuce and some summer green beans. The next row (which you can sorta see sprouting… if you look reeeeeeeeealy close) is red peppers and jalapenos, and the last row is parsley and basil.

I’m not a gardening expert by any means, but last year my garden was quite impressive, if I do say so myself… The most fruitful veggies of Winkle Garden 2009 were tomatoes, zucchini (and LOTS of zucchini) and herbs (parsley, basil, cilantro and dill). I was actually pretty amazed by how well my garden did last year, since I was calling it an “experiment”. So, this year, I have a little higher of expectations. I’m a little worried about the romaine, though, since I had quite a hard time trying to grow lettuce last year (and I believe I planted it a little late this year)… we’ll see though. I also used different soil/nutrients this year… Last year I used an organic mix along with extra manure. This year, however, I’ve used non-organic Miracle Grow garden mix - it will be interesting to see if there are any differences.

I’ve also planted some flowers, which is a new endeavor for me. I love flowers, of course - I just never thought I had the time (or the skill) to grow them. But, like my veggie garden, I’m just testing things out… Doing what I think will be good for the flowers and seeing what happens. If they don’t work out, I’ll try again. It’s all about “feeling it”, I believe (which might be because I’m not really one to do research/follow instruction manuals - oops!). No matter what though, it’s fun to play in the dirt and see what you can grow.

On a similar note, I’ve been pretty much obsessed with Jamie Oliver lately… His Food Revolution show (which was on ABC) just finished, and he has a plethora of information and recipes on his web site (www.jamieoliver.com). There are so many things I love about his style… he uses so many fresh and whole ingredients, and he creates healthy meals with tons of flavor (and that are quite easy to prepare). I’ve made quite a few of his recipes, which I’ve either found online or on his 20-min. meals iphone app.

Jamie’s legit - seriously changing the way people eat. I love, love, love his philosophy… And even though I’m not a perfect/healthy cook/eater all the time, I believe that just learning little things here and there and slowly incorporating them into my life is the only way I’ll change the way I think of food. And these are things I’m happy to be thinking about/working out now, so that when the day comes that I have children, I can pass along these valuable lessons. That, my friend, is how we can change the world.

I’ll post updates on the garden along the way… Wish me luck!