In parts one and two of this series, I discussed why my local community garden is inaccessible and how I created my indoor hydroponic garden as an alternative. Now I want to dig a little deeper into how disability impacts my gardening and how gardening impacts my disability. The intermittent nature of my chronic illness means that sometimes I have full use of all four limbs and all five senses, but many times I don’t. Whatever I'm capable of doing on any given day, I won't be able to do it for long. Having a garden in my living room means I never have to walk more than 10 steps in any direction and can sit in a comfortable chair to rest periodically. Because I don’t have to travel to an outside location, I’m free to work in my garden a few minutes at a time and take breaks when I can’t focus on the task at hand. Timers for my grow lights and a plant calendar app help with consistency and planning. In a climate-controlled building, there’s no danger of heat exhaustion. Working
In part 1 of this series, I explored why I found my local community garden inaccessible and generally unwelcoming to disabled people. Now I want to talk about what I did instead to grow some of my own food. This is my hydroponic garden. It’s not very pretty on the outside, but it’s mine. Hydroponics is a method of gardening that requires no land or soil. Instead, plants grow in a solution of water and dissolved minerals. While much of the science was developed by marijuana growers who had to keep plants indoors to avoid law enforcement, hydroponic farms now produce a wide variety of crops all over the world. NASA has even used hydroponics to grow veggies in microgravity on the International Space Station. Before I describe how I grew my garden, I want to identify the privileges that allowed me to do so. I live in my mother’s apartment where there is space for several large shelving units. Electricity, heat, and water are included in her rent. I have i