This post is contributed by Kurt Reiger
High Caliper Growing, Maker of the Smart Pots
Every cook knows that fresh ingredients are key to great cuisine. The food would taste better if you could select each item at the farm and the garden and the orchard and the grove and right at the docks. Some chefs actually have small gardens in a backyard or on a rooftop to augment what they buy at the store. But space is always an issue.
The answer is to container grow at least some of the food you cook. To successfully container grow, you need a specialty container that is specifically made to promote plant growth.
Have you tried growing herbs and vegetables in a black plastic container? The plants do not grow very well. Traditional plastic containers get hot, and the roots circle around without branching or fibering.
The Smart Pot from High Caliper Growing is a fabric aeration container that releases heat and promotes root branching and root enhancement. Great root development will give you a great plant. Speaking horticulturally, the Smart Pot is a miniature raised bed.
We especially recommend growing herbs in the Smart Pot. Herbs cut from the plant, chopped and placed directly into food give freshness to cooking that is powerful and distinctive. The taste of fresh herbs is far stronger than store bought herbs. As a chef, you will want to taste it in your food before serving a dish to friends or customers. An herb leaf that was part of a plant ten minutes before being served in your pasta has a much stronger and fresher flavor. The natural moisture in the leaf is still present and has a full taste. You have to try truly fresh to understand the difference.
We hope you will try growing tarragon, basil, rosemary, thyme, parsley, oregano, sage, or perhaps cilantro. Mint also does well. Grown in a container, it will not spread and take over the garden.
Of course you can grow herbs and dry them for later use. But we recommend cutting them fresh from the plant and putting them directly into your cooking. Do not use too much. Fresh can be overpowering!
For more information about Smart Pots, visit www.smartpots.com!
