In New England we have been enjoying (okay some are complaining) a nice slow roll out of spring. This means that everything is blooming in slow motion. I am loving it not only because spring in Cambridge is beautiful but also because we had our big trip to Japan this spring and the jet lag upon return set me back a couple of weeks. I am juststarting my   kitchen garden now, but somehow the timing feels just right. Back To The Roots sent me some herbs-in-a-can kits, an aquarium ecosystem type kit and an Oyster Mushroom Farm to test out. 

So now I have my herbs started and an oyster  mushroom farm ready to grow some fabulous fungi on my counter. I had planned to plant the seeds with the kids but they have done that with me every year and I think they are more into the watering and cooking with the herbs than planting them now. Instead of watching dirt fly all over, I enjoyed a quiet urbanfarming  moment myself in the kitchen. Okay so maybe I did make an even bigger mess than the kids do. (shhh don’t tell)

The mushroom farm is totally new to me and I can’t wait to see how it evolves.  My daughter asks to mist it (we mist it 2x a day) before I even get at “good morning” from her.  I will keep you posted as the mushrooms grow. Stay tuned for pictures and some recipes when the time comes to harvest.

I started off using a skewer to poke little holes for my seeds but it didn’t work especially with the tiny seeds. I found it more useful to grab a tiny handful of dirt off the top of the can and then sprinkle the seeds in and add the soil back on top.

I can’t wait to see and taste the first sprouts.  What I love about these Back to The Roots herbs are that they take minutes to start because they are ‘all in one’. I don’t need to dig up little seed starter pots or worry about labels disappearing because it is right on the can. The cute little labels I made in the past all faded off the popsicle sticks as the sticks absorbed water from the plants.