You don’t need to pull out the shovel to create a bountiful garden. You don’t even need a plot of land. Not if you use Lettuce Grow farmstands (www.lettucegrow.com), which can be placed on your patio or even a corner of a room. The self-watering, self-fertilizing hydroponic vertical gardens can be used to grow lettuce and other fresh produce.
No green thumbs in your household? No worries. These futuristic-looking recycled plastic containers (made in the USA) also come with starter seedlings and Glow Rings LED indoor grow lights to make gardening more fail-proof. Founded by Jacob Pechenik and Zooey Deschanel as an initiative of The Farm Project, Lettuce Grow is on a mission to help people use fewer resources by growing healthier food at home.
Each compact garden system is tuned to facilitate growing 12-30 plants. “When you grow your own produce, from seedling to fork, your relationship with and understanding of the food you eat grows right along with it,” says Pechenik. “It’s thrilling to play a role in helping people discover that. And now, with the Glow Rings, you can have this experience even if you don’t have the outdoor space.”
To date, Lettuce Grow’s farmstands have given new life to more than 540,000 milk jugs. Because they recirculate water and nutrients, Farmstands use around 95% less water than soil-based growing.
In addition to farmstands and Glow Rings, Lettuce Grow offers a variety of more than 200 seedlings, curated to mature quickly and successfully in farmstands. Plants are raised to seedlings on a farm before being shipped out in eco-friendly packaging to finish developing in customers’ farmstands. After “planting” and spending five minutes or so a week on “farming” duties, growers can enjoy food in three weeks. Lettuce Grow reminds customers to add water and assists with other gardening questions. Lettuce Grow has a companion iOS app, complete with a plant ID feature that enables users to order replacement seedlings as they go. A digital community of at-home growers shares gardening triumphs and advice.
The company also has a Lettuce Give program, which is committed to improving access to fresh, healthy food for everyone, regardless of income. The program currently grants one farmstand for every 10 sold to schools, nonprofits and community organizations around the country.
For more information, visit lettucegrow.com.
