Hi everyone! I'm Natalie, I'm 17, and this all started when I grew some lettuce, basil, and cilantro in my bedroom window. Being able to eat plants I grew myself made me so happy, and I wanted to share that joy with my community. Especially families who don't have easy access to fresh herbs or vegetables.
Recently, I brought 12 basil plants and 2 pepper plants I grew in my bedroom from seed to my local south Dallas church food drive and gave them away for free. I was honestly shocked by how quickly they went, I ran out before everyone could get one. That experience made me want to grow even more next time for the thanksgiving and Christmas events so everyone who wants a plant can have one.
I'm hoping to expand this little project, and I'd love advice from experienced gardeners: what are some fast-growing herbs or vegetables that do well in 4-inch pots? Also, if anyone has ideas for ways local communities might help with things like small pots, soil, or seeds, I'd love to hear them!
by sleepingstrawberrii
2 Comments
That’s very nice of you and very inspiring! And you’ve done more than just giving away plants, those people might get into gardening as a result! Good goes around!
I love this project! Are there p-patches or community gardens near you? They might be able to help with soil/amendments/nursery pots, as well as plenty of advice about what plants would do well in your area. The community garden might have seeds, or they might have a suggestion of how/where to get free/low cost seeds. Or a university extension office? They would also have a ton of advice about which plants to start when, plus ideas for how you can improve your growing process/set up.
You said you’re 17, is there a way you could work this into a project for school? Some kind of senior project? Gardening is full of science and planning, and you’re sure to learn so much as you keep working on this.
Maybe you could do a fundraiser for supplies if you can’t find enough for free? I bet there’s a bunch of people in your community who would love to support your mission to give back and help others.