balcony gardening

Sometimes we take our food for granted. For many of us, picking out the perfect head of lettuce at the grocery store is as hard as we work to acquire our food. Half in an effort to be eco-friendly and half just to see what happens, our tiny balcony has become home to an equally tiny garden (with help & inspiration from my green thumb dad). It's not only a pleasant surprise to see all the green out the window, it also comes in very handy to have fresh vegetables at my fingertips.


Above are photos of my lettuce and broccoli, who live in cozy quarters with some peas, strawberries, carrots, cilantro, celery, cherry tomatoes, spinach and rosemary. In their midst is the somewhat offensive compost pot which receives periodic offerings of coffee grounds, edamame shells or other green kitchen scraps.


Vegetables may seem like a simple thing, but the challenge of sustaining a life, giving it just the right amount of care and attention, has been more rewarding than I had anticipated. What could be better than helping something grow and change and in the end quite literally enjoying the fruits of your labor?