One small pea, one giant step for protecting the planet

I'm not exaggerating - grow one small pea and you're on your way to protecting Earth.

Visiting my mother in South Texas for several months, I had admired her garden - especially the tomatoes. Y-u-m. So pretty, so fun to spy a wee red bulb and pluck it for dinner, if I could wait that long.

So when the opportunity arose to try PittMoss (yes, you're reading that right), which uses recycled newspapers to replace the properties of peat moss and absorb less water, I was onboard. I planted black-eyed peas. Not only was it a fun project - I chose to mix about half PittMoss with dirt/mud - but it worked.

PittMoss was featured on an episode of "Shark Tank", where its inventor Mont Handley discussed the product - what the company says "was developed from seeing the degradation of important peat-lands being harvested for potting soils."

In simple terms, the recycled material is more eco-friendly than traditional peat moss, while both types are working to enhance growth by using less water. The product is supposed to offer an added benefit, purportedly pumping nutrients back into the soil.

I enjoyed my first experience planting anything by myself, but being my first time, don't have enough to compare PittMoss to. That being said, it only took I think two weeks, maybe less, for the first black-eyed pea to appear!

The day before I was to leave Texas, I was out back watering when I jumped for joy. A pea had sprouted! Now, I should mention my mom had bought me five more pots to plant after I'd innocently thought one would be enough - thanks, Mom.

I am sad that I will not be in the garden to see more peas sprout, but happy Mom can enjoy them.

Photo: The author's black-eyed pea sprouts skyward; two still-potted plants (since planted in the soil) are in the foreground.