I spent time this past weekend in Santa Cruz working at an organic farm my buddy Justin setup at a local high school. With help from a grant provided by UC Santa Cruz and several other foundations, the farm was built with plans to integrate it into the school’s curriculum. A class will be provided to students who are interested in learning about the process of building infrastructure with time spent outside actually maintaining the farm. The 1-acre plot of land was built with less money than you’d think using organic seeds and only water, no chemicals to feed the crops. A simple irrigation system with timer allows the farm to basically take care of itself, with the majority of human labor spent in planting and maintenance when the plants need attention.

What really blew me away was the quality of produce coming out of the ground when we finally got down to harvesting the plants. The picture above is a crate we put together in less than thirty minutes and only from about a third of the plants on the farm. That crate easily has enough lettuce, carrots, basil, strawberries, plums, apples and more to last a four person family a week and then some. With the rising price of food in grocery stores due to shortages and high transportation costs, growing at home is an incredibly frugal way to feed yourself. Just yesterday I saw a small box of strawberries at the market down the street for $4.99, which would maybe provide one or two servings, at most. So here is what I propose to families worldwide: Take whatever land you have - it might be a window box, even if you live in a tiny apartment you can invest in the AeroGrow and plant some seeds. They could be herbs, or tomatoes, or strawberries, whatever. Save yourself some money, save a trip to the store and become sustainable.

Yes I know I make it sound like it’s easy, but really, it is! Sure you won’t be able to replace everything in your pantry and refrigerator but organic produce is healthy, tastes great and in the end you will feel a sense of accomplishment. California’s very green, forward and open thinking about the environment and the economy has opened my eyes. I hope to write more about green practices and sustainability in the posts to come.