I've lured you here today with this picture of mouthwatering chocolate meringues but it's just a ruse to make you sit still for a bit of a rant. A number of things converged in the past couple of weeks and I've really got to share this stuff with you. I had the opportunity to attend the Brooklyn Food Conference in Fort Greene and sit on a panel to discuss "women's place at the table." Frankly, I was a bit miscast as this conference is heavily oriented toward policy and the other panelists were talking about single mothers, the struggling poor and disenfranchised immigrants (and me, with my penchant for expensive ingredients!), but I was able to chime in a bit about the importance of gardening. I remembered this article, about a single mother of three who had to go back to the land to feed her family—in Brooklyn!—and wound up eating better than ever before for much less money. The idea of community gardens—even a few raised beds for growing vegetables—could help change the lives of people eating in food deserts. Then I read about Seattle's new project, creating a 7-acre "edible forest" of fruit-bearing trees and plants as part of an effort to rehabilitate their local ecosystem, and I began to have some hope for the future.
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I remember Union Square before it was lush with may apple and trillium and wild geranium and bushy mountain laurel. I remember when it was full of runaways and junkies and winos—another kind of seedy entirely. This week, G came across this vending machine at the farmers market there. It sells "seedbombs," little nuggets of plant seeds, compost and clay that turn everyone into a guerilla gardener. They're meant to be simply dropped into soil anywhere. Created by design duo Daniel Philips and Kim Karlsrud of Los Angeles-based Common Studio, the seedbomb vending machines help people transform empty outdoor spaces into lush, green communities. Their Northeast Wildflower Mix contains almost two dozen varieties, including Aster,
 Purple Coneflower, Sweet Alyssum and Black-Eyed Susan. The vending machines are available to rent or buy, and Common Studio will even develop a seed mix and a strategic neighborhood intervention plan in response to the unique ecologies of your area. Machines can then be installed at local bars, businesses, schools, parks, or anywhere you think they can have the biggest impact.
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