Skip to content

Commit

Permalink
Update first-principles.html
Browse files Browse the repository at this point in the history
  • Loading branch information
nimeshaperi authored Oct 21, 2024
1 parent bfd2cc2 commit 36e17d4
Showing 1 changed file with 17 additions and 3 deletions.
20 changes: 17 additions & 3 deletions public/first-principles.html
Original file line number Diff line number Diff line change
Expand Up @@ -177,10 +177,21 @@ <h2>Content</h2>
<main>
<h1>First Principles</h1>
<p>
A note to start with: much of this knowledge is distributed very widely;
some of the best seem to be video content. Basic steps as distilled
here:
Creating your own food garden can be a fulfilling experience, whether you have a spacious plot of land or just a small balcony. The key is to work with your available space and choose plants that thrive in the tropical climate.
</p>
<p>For those with ample land, start by figuring out what kind of soil you have and how much rain and sun you get. Once you have a clear idea of these three, proceed through the rest of this text and start selecting things to plant depending on what you're working with.</p>
<p>In general:</p>
<ul>
<li>Raised beds can improve drainage, which is particularly beneficial during monsoon seasons, and makes maintenance easier.</li>
<li>Plan for pathways and consider installing a simple irrigation system to save time on watering (we've linked an extremely budget version below)</li>
<li>Don't forget to create a composting area. This will help you recycle kitchen waste and create nutrient-rich soil for your plants.</li>
</ul>
<p>In smaller spaces like balconies or compact backyards, container gardening becomes your best ally. Choose plants that don't need a lot of space, pots with good drainage and use high-quality potting soil. Focus on compact varieties of vegetables that thrive in containers, like chili peppers, cherry tomatoes, or bush varieties of okra and eggplant. Vertical gardening techniques can maximize your growing area - try wall-mounted planters for herbs like curry leaves and coriander, or use trellises for climbers such as bitter gourd or passion fruit.</p>
<p>For balconies, utilize railing planters and hanging baskets to grow trailing plants. These add greenery without taking up precious floor space.</p>
<p>For composting in smaller spaces, consider the Bokashi composting system. It's a way of using fungi to turn your kitchen waste very efficiently into extremely nutrient-dense compost tea (in fact, this 'tea' is powerful enough that we're currently being overrun by malabar spinach at the office after experimenting with it).</p>
<p>While we can't recommend a particular brand, a simple google search will show you where to find most of these things in Sri Lanka. You can get plants and materials delivered to you easily.</p>
<p>We've linked some information you should learn before you go out and start buying stuff below:</p>

<h2>One: Building soil and compost</h2>
<iframe
width="560"
Expand Down Expand Up @@ -459,6 +470,9 @@ <h2>Four: Upgrading: flowers, companion plants and fruit</h2>
for the garden.
</p>

<h2>Five: Monitoring your garden</h2>
<p>If you're technically inclined, we have a tool for you! Over at <a href="https://github.com/team-watchdog/apocalypse-sensor-kit" target="_blank">https://github.com/team-watchdog/apocalypse-sensor-kit</a>, we've built and shared the blueprints and software for an open-source sensor network that can read temperature, soil moisture, humidity, light intensity - and beam them all to your phone. If you have a very large space to look over, and if you have some engineering and soldering skills, we encourage you to check this out. It's entirely open-source, so feel free to use, modify and do as you see fit.</p>

<h2>References for this document</h2>
<ul>
<li>
Expand Down

0 comments on commit 36e17d4

Please sign in to comment.