I’m not sure why I write about gardening so much. At its high point (left), my balcony “garden” consisted of just one basil, parsley, and thyme plant each. That, btw, was when I first bought potted herbs. Since then, I’ve managed to kill two of the three — The parsley miraculously clings on.

Yet I’m continuously curious about balcony gardening, nevermind that I do almost none of it. I’m a fan of Food Not Lawns. I follow Farmlab events, even when I don’t attend. And of course, I quickly bookmark garden-related links I come across, and dream of pretty weekends in the garden:

Grow a matchstick garden. Poke seedy matchstick into soil, watch herbs grow. Bonnie Alter of Treehugger calls matchstick garden “a miniature form of guerrilla gardening.” How simple! Except you will still need to remember to water the new garden once in a while — something I’ve discovered I’m not so good at doing.

Mix gardening with poultry. Amy Stewart gardens with hens, as does Anaïs of Path to Freedom in Pasadena. Be chicken enough to consider doing likewise –

Engage in garden politics. Elaine Lipson, author of The Organic Foods Sourcebook, writes about why organic food is a feminist issue in this feature article in Ms. “Every feminist, woman or man, who embraces equality and diversity and opposes violence and domination, should recognize that the foods we eat, and how they’re grown, matter to our environment and to our lives.”

I’m gonna try to restart my garden this weekend. Or at least buy some matchsticks –

[crossposted on BlogHer]

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