Cheaply Grow your own Smoothie Ingredients with the Food is Free Project

I got this idea from the Food is Free Project.

My neighbor, Jerry, is pushing 80 years old and is always asking me for something to do because he is bored.  So I had him build me a box and then I planted some herbs in it.

I think it is pretty cool how the herbs are watered from below.

Step 1

Jerry prepared a box.  The black part inside the box is a couple of trash bags that he stapled into place.  The bottom of the box is a couple of strips of artificial grass turned upside down that are placed directly on the ground because the box did not have a wood bottom.

Step 2

I taped a shower curtain inside the box.  This shower curtain serves as a liner, which will hold water.

Step 3

I filled the liner half way up with rock.  The vertical pipe stuck into the rock in the rear left of the picture is how the plants will be watered.  The horizontal pipe laying on the rock has several holes drilled into it and sticks out a hole in the side of the box.  When water rises to the level of the horizontal pipe, it will overflow through the pipe and out the side of the box.

Both pipes are made of pvc.

Step 4

I placed a burlap sack on top of the rock.  This will act as a barrier from the rock and the dirt while allowing water to pass through.

Step 5

I placed dirt on top of the burlap sack.

Step 6

I planted some herbs.  (Basil, Oregano, Parsley and Sage)

Step 7

I ran my sprinkler line into the horizontal pipe because I didn’t want to carry buckets of water over to dump into the pipe. (If you click on the picture, it will enlarge and you can see a close up of the horizontal pipe and sprinkler line)

In one month, my herb garden looks like this.  For further instruction, check out the Food is Free Project.