I used to want to be an urban farmer. Heck. I just told a lie. I still want to be an urban farmer, but the reality that I live in a desert has finally set in. (Water, Or The Lack Thereof) I always knew that water was a precious resource, but I figured a small garden wouldn’t use a lot. Well, long story short: I was wrong. I never knew how quicky water evaporated into thin air when utilized in a dry heat.
Pictured about was what my garden used to look like back when I didn’t know what I was doing. I would have to water it every day to keep it alive, and I would feel guilty doing so. Water, water everywhere, and a lot of it wouldn’t even soak into the soil. I’ve since downsized my veggie patch, and now it’s four reasonably sized boxes:
I still have to water it daily, but at least I use a lot less. Also, I’ve stopped planting anything at all during the summer. I used to try to grow watermelons in July. That was never easy. The melons would usually split right when they started to get big because the heat was too much for them to tolerate. I don’t even want to admit how much water I used to waste growing stuff during the summer. Lots. Too much. An obscene amount. I wish I could get that water back. I tell myself that it got reabsorbed into the atmosphere. That water never went away, so I tell myself. I think that it’s true. Maybe. Probably not. Well, I don’t waste water like that anymore. No. I’m gonna stick to winter gardening from here on out. The rest of the year will become survival of the fittest. I’m slowly but surely transitioning my yard into desert landscaping, which is what I should have been doing all along.
Time will tell how long this garden will last. From where I’m standing, the water future is looking mighty grim.
Krista Marson 