Whether you’re a greenhorn at gardening, or have the greenest of green fingers, getting going with the shovel at the beginning of the growing season can seem like the hardest part of it all. Preparing the soil and sowing the seeds properly is both tedious and time consuming. What if it could be over in a matter of minutes?
Enter Chris Chapman, a British designer with a passion for cool green projects and sustainability designs. He has many tricks up his sleeve, but what impressed Active You most was the Roll-Out Veg Mat. Essentially, it’s corrugated cardboard that’s impregnated with veggie seeds and fertilizers.
To sow your seeds, all you need to do is roll out the “Veg Mat” and cover it with soil. That’s all (Yes, I’m serious). Your vegetable garden will now just need regular maintenance while you wait for the seedlings to peek out through the dirt; all the other work is done... instantly! How’s that for uncomplicated elegance?
(Note: If you haven’t figured it out yet, the cardboard, covered with wet soil, will break down in a matter of days and the seeds will be free to sprout and “come up for air”.)
You may not find the Roll-Out Veg Mat yet at your local nursery, so here’s how you can make some mats for yourself, to prepare your garden for the coming spring.
· Decide on what you’d like to cultivate on your vegetable patch. Look ahead and plan for the spring, summer and fall, so that you can have your mats ready and done all at once. Buy the seeds (or, you may get them all for free right here!)
· Find out the germination rates for various seeds and the companion gardening guidelines, so that you know which seeds can be embedded together in the mats. For example, lettuces and radishes can go together, as can broccoli and tomatoes. But combine them together and their growing times will clash, causing difficulty during harvesting time.
Companion gardening gives you an idea about complementary needs for plants, and this knowledge can help you do away with organic fertilizers and natural pesticides, maximizing the yield of your vegetable garden while making the job easier for you at the same time.
· Now to creating your mats. Chapman's design uses pouches, but that makes it difficult to space out the seeds. A better solution would be to apply a thick paste of flour over the soft cardboard, and then embed the seeds in the dough at the recommended distance. Once it’s dry, it’s ready for use as and when you need it.
· Final step, when it’s time to grow a new batch of veggies. Just loosen the soil in a sunny part of your garden, place your mat and cover it with compost to the appropriate depth. Done... your garden planting is over in minutes!
