I spent 20 years as a Product Designer in the Automotive industry. I understand how things work. And I saw the bankruptcy of the American auto industry coming a decade ago.
I'll let you in on another little secret, the economy isn't going to get better any time soon. No matter how much the morons who wrecked it try to tell you that they know how to fix it.
If you want to grow things as a hobby, have fun.
But if you're interested in being able to grow enough food to actually make a difference in your life, today's your lucky day.
I've spent years developing and using the things I write about. And most of the time, I've developed things out of necessity.
Poor soil
The county I live in has soil that contains less than 1% organic matter. It's mostly sand and the topsoil that is here is only a few inches deep. So I did the research and found that commercailly made planters where way too expensive. That's where these plans came from. That was also why I learned to build up my soil naturally, because it was inexpensive. I'm now a certified Master Composter.
Short growing season
I couldn't afford to buy a commercially made greenhouse either. I built my own using salvaged lumber, some of it came from cutting up an old telephone pole. Total cost, about $50.00 for a 9'x9' greenhouse. I also learned a lot from that so you can avoid the mistakes I made the first time around.
Unreliable well
And the $2500 for a new well would take a while to come up with. So we adapted and improvised. A rainwater harvesting system created a 110 gallon reservoir of water for the planters. With scrounged materials and the ones I had to buy, total cost was about $40.00. (And even without running water we had an inside toilet and were able to shower.)
That's a short list of the challenges we've dealt with. This country's infrastructure is decades old and in poor repair. We've also spent a week without electricity after a wind storm and days without power in the middle of winter without electricity.
I've earned my credentials the hard way. And I'm offering you the opportunity to learn from my experience.
Starting with the self watering planter instructions (simpler than all of the other designs I've seen, then again, design for manufacturing was what I did for 20 years) followed by the all natural growing manual and the mini greenhouse instructions, we'll follow up with instructions to do things I've already been doing for years.
About Me
Questions? Email us at info@blindsquirl.com
Testimonials:
Wonderfull!! I grow Tomatoes, Basil and Dill in one planter and I can go away for a couple of days without having to worry about watering.
Sally A.
Brighton, Mi
DIY Self-watering Planter
