Project Veggie Garden, Day 7

It is only day 7 of our garden project, and our little red lettuce seedlings are already popping up to say hello! We're so excited! No signs of life from the basil, eggplant, and pepper seeds yet, but it's still very early.

We're still new to the composting thing, so I've been doing research on that in the small amount of time I have after my little one goes to bed and before I start crashing myself. As I mentioned in my first post, we use cloth diapers on our son, but we also incorporate some hybrid diapers called gDiapers and occasional Seventh Generation disposables. You are probably wondering what diapers have to do with gardening. Well, gDiapers can be used with cloth inserts, which we use 95% of the time, but they also have a biodegradable insert which can be flushed down the toilet or composted (wet ones only!). Until now, we have been flushing our biodegradable inserts and washing everything else as usual. The whole human-waste-as-compost thing is kind of icky at first thought, I admit. But it turns out urine is a great free source of nitrogen, which your plants need to grow, so it's actually economical, green, and completely safe for your garden. Plus the diapers themselves are made of materials that are great for composting. A direct quote from the gDiapers website:

The outer cellulose based cover and inner fluff pulp provide organic matter, while the SAP provides the ‘water storing granules’. You will find SAP in the more expensive potting compost at your local plant nursery, so by adding your baby’s wet only gRefills to your home compost (or worm farm) you are adding your own free supply of ‘water storing granules’. Your baby’s urine is the main source of nitrogen, an essential element for growing plants and is completely safe for garden use.

Now, I still intend to use all cloth for our son's bum the vast majority of the time. But it's nice to know that when we do use the biodegradable inserts, rather than wasting water with the extra flushing, his diapers (and the pee inside) will be helping our garden grow. So in a way, Jackson is helping out with the garden, too. Thanks, kiddo!

Alright, that's enough from me for now. Good luck to all who are beginning to sow seeds and plant their own veggies!