GARDENING WITH NATURE IN MIND

This month we meet Sandy Lipo of Good Roots Barn, who is so passionate about reducing plastic use in the garden she’s made a business out of it

- Sandy Lipo

Sandy is inspired by nature and gardening allows her to connect with that ethos. Her website and blog are very much about growing her own but integrated with the natural world and ideas on how to embrace and protect it.

Have you always loved gardening and growing your own veg?

I only really started gardening when I moved into a house in my mid-20s. That was bigger than the gardens I’d previously had and it became very clear that it would need some maintenance. But quite quickly I realised that just maintaining it was not enough and I became interested in growing my own vegetables.

It really all started on a window ledge with coriander seeds and I was hooked.

Now I grow as much as I possibly can, vegetables, herbs, flowers, all from seed. And this year I began propagation of my houseplants which I give away to family and friends when they visit.

What are your views on recycling?

I have been a keen recycler although sitting in on some webinars during this lockdown period has really opened my eyes to the fact that we really don’t have a reliable infrastructure to cope with the extensive amount of waste households produce. So now I don’t rely completely on recycling as I’m convinced this should be a last resort; today I try to practise a zero waste lifestyle where possible. It can be tricky but it is achievable if you become a conscious consumer and acknowledge that all your waste has to go ‘somewhere’. It’s about asking yourself, what am I going to do with it once it’s served its purpose.