Growing Your Own Food Matters More Than Ever!
There are a lot of benefits to growing your own vegetables and fruit at home. Here are just a few reasons why growing your own food:
Water Conservation:
Vegetable (and fruit) gardens actually use less water than traditional bluegrass lawns, often saving 50–75% of water use — especially if using drip irrigation and mulch. If you live in a dry and drought-prone region, removing grass and adding vegetable gardens can help cut down on water use and expense.
Save Money on Food:
Grocery store prices are constantly rising. Growing your own food can save money – make sure to grow a variety of productive vegetables so you can produce enough food to preserve and use throughout the year. Talk to other gardeners or gardening groups in your area to find out what grows well for them, and try those varieties. Different veggies do better in various growing regions so it's good to grow what works well in your area, but you can also experiment and try growing lots of varieties to figure out what works best for you. Grow veggies that you like, too! Growing vegetables from seeds is the most cost effective way to grow your own food.
Fresher Produce = More Nutrition!
There's a reason why homegrown tomatoes taste so much better! Your tastebuds know what's up. In addition to vibrant colors and unsurpassed flavors, when you harvest and eat vegetables and fruits seasonally from your garden, you're getting better health benefits than produce that has been picked and transported long distances, taking days to get to your local store. Eating seasonal, fresh fruit and vegetables is one of the Blue Zones identified with well-being and longevity.
Enjoy your Own Pesticide-Free Food:
Growing your own food allows you to control what's on it – by not using pesticides and chemicals, you can eat your own produce that you know has not been directly treated or sprayed with any pesticides.
Growing a Garden Supports Pollinators and Wildlife:
Growing organically and incorporating native plants and flowers in and around your vegetable garden can support diversity and be a safe place for birds and butterflies. Grow edible flowers and companion plants with your vegetables to support your local ecosystem while you grow food! Pollinator and bird populations are decreasing, so any flowers and habitat you can provide can make a big difference, even if it's just in a balcony pot.
Enjoy More Variety:
Grow a wider variety of vegetables to use in the kitchen – grow heirlooms and unusual vegetables and fruits that you can't find in the store. It's fun to grow rare and unusual specialty peppers or heirloom tomatoes that you can't find in stores. Plus, you can't buy a lot of fully ripe peppers for example, jalapeños and green chile are more perishable when they ripen to red – but that is also when they are most delicious!! As it is hard to find these ripe pods in stores, if you grow them yourself, you can let them fully ripen on the vine and pick them when ready to eat and enjoy their more intense ripened flavors.
You can Share Food with your Community:
Growing your own food often ends up with an abundance that you can share with neighbors, friends, family and food banks. You'd be amazed how many zucchini a single plant can put out, and you will be happy to share this with others.
Growing Food is Possible in Small Spaces:
Some people grow indoors using supplemental lights and some even grow them hydroponically (in water). You can also grow vegetables in pots! Peppers, tomatoes, herbs, carrots and other vegetables can be grown in patio containers. Even if you start with just a pot of Basil on a sunny windowsill, that's a great way to experience the great flavor and satisfaction of growing some of your own food. Learn more about growing vegetables in containers »
Use Less Plastic & Resources:
Produce from the store is harvested and shipped to the store, often from around the world, which uses a lot of resources. Plus, a lot of produce from the store uses plastic packaging or labels. Growing your own saves a lot of plastic packaging and fuel. Growing your own food is a great way to cut back on your resource consumption. Since it's nearly impossible to grow all of your own food, try to find and purchase produce from local farms, CSAs and Farmers' Markets to get the most local, seasonable food available. Don't forget to bring your own bags or containers, and ride a bike, walk or take public transportation if you can.
Growing Vegetables Seeds is Easy!
Start small or go big! Pop in some radish seeds into a bare spot in your garden to experience the joy and amazement of watching them quickly grow into perfect little red orbs to add to your salad. Add some lettuce seeds to a pot with potting mix, and grow a small salad garden. Sprinkle dill seeds in your flower garden in early spring to enjoy their beautiful summer blooms and use this delicious herb in the kitchen for salads, pickling, or as seasoning for potatoes, veggies, and proteins. Direct seed some summer squash in mounds and watch how fast it grows, the blossoms and the squash are edible, even the leaves can be used like spinach and thrown into soups or stir fries. Grow some seeds for the fastest growing peppers indoors under lights, then plant in pots or in your garden to experience the magic of growing your own crunchy, delicious pods. Just start growing.
These are just a few reasons why growing your own food matters and how it benefits you and the world.
Happy growing!
