Taking the Grow on the Road

Urban gardening has always been a challenge. There are only a few options. The window box herb garden, for example. Or the terrace tomato plant. But what if you want cabbages, peppers and green beans? What if a window box and a balcony planter just aren't enough?

One solution: Look to your parking lot, where you may have a pickup truck parked idly, ready to become a farm.

According to Karen Murphy at Causecast, such is the story of Brooklyners Ian Cheney and Curt Ellis, the masterminds behind the industrial farming tell-all film King Corn. Looking for a use for their 1986 Dodge Ram pickup and a place to grow a few veggies in the city, they satisfied both needs with the creation of the smallest and fastest-moving farm you've ever seen.

They loaded dirt in the bed of the truck, planted seeds and set up a solar-powered time-lapse camera to record the project for posterity. Or at least for all of us YouTube addicts who can't stop ourselves from watching whatever flashes onto our computer screens, even if that actually means watching grass — okay, tomatoes — grow.

So what does one do with a  truck full of veggies? Why, make yourself into a CSA (community-supported agriculture) farm of course! Anyone who wants to shell out $20 can be a member of the Truck Farm CSA program, which will supply you with a copy of the Truck Farm DVD and a ticket to attend a summer picnic catered from the truck's bounty.

Check it out for yourself below, with Episode 2 of the entertaining Truck Farm video series (for those pressed for time, the neat time-lapse stuff starts around 2:40).

Photo courtesy of stock.xchang.