I was practically in love when I harvested Romaine Lettuce from my outdoor vegetable garden; the miracle of growth from a little seed, the ease of growing, the beauty of the vivid green leaves and then the taste of the crisp, fresh salad was amazing.
When autumn came and I could no longer garden, I was very disappointed and got to work on getting year-round food sources. Lettuce in my grocery store during the winter months looked more like paper towel than a food source.
I signed up to receive food recall notices from the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and during the summer, I was getting 1 to 2 notices a day. It was scaring me how many of our food sources were becoming contaminated and how people were getting poisoned and sick from tainted food. Commercial operations interested more in profit than food taste and nutrition was bothering me. As a consumer, I wanted an affordable alternative.
As I live in a Northern climate, it is difficult to get fresh local produce unless it is grown in local heated hydroponic greenhouses.
I found some hydroponics links and got to work building a hydroponics system. I experimented with growing lettuce, kale and beans last winter and it really worked well. I researched hydroponics and came up with a low cost to build and low cost to maintain system.
I am quite pleased to present the Vertical Veggie Farm so that you too can garden in your own home year-round even if you don't have access to land. Get Growing and Bon Appetit!
