Start Me Up

I've begun sowing seeds like my life depended on it. I'm really hoping to grow most of our own produce this year. 
With finishing up the last book, I got a little behind on starting seeds, but I'm steadily catching up. I absolutely adore the process of sowing seeds. To witness the latent life inside a tiny seed is such an inspiring metaphor to consider.

These shelves (sorry for the quality of the photo-it's a dark corner and it has been raining outside today) will hold everything from culinary & medicinal flowers, to cut flowers, and, of course, many varieties of vegetables. The dangle-y things on the far right are asparagus crowns, which will be put in as soon as it stops raining (they'll take 2 years of uninterrupted growth before harvest, though, so planting them will be a lesson in patience). 
I've been especially interested in heirloom and unusual seed varieties, in order to diversify the selections that we're so often limited to when shopping for produce in large supermarkets, even natural food ones. 
I've got another batch to sow this weekend, and then one more round after that. Otherwise, I've got a good bit of seeds to sow directly in April and then another batch to sow once it warms up a bit more, in mid-May. 

Are you growing anything this year, even if it's just a pot of parsley on a windowsill? Seed starting is pretty popular these days. Check out this article from the New York Times. 

*Small Measure: Grow something! It needn't be grandiose or even abundant. Start small if all you have is a windowsill. I once grew beans and tomatoes inside a 3rd floor apartment from the light provided by a skylight. Growing something yourself obviously shortens the transit necessary for foods to reach the table, but it also presents opportunities for eating foods at their peak of ripeness. Growing foods also forces you to slow down. Healthy growth takes time, patience, and love.