The Benefits of Growing Your Own Food

Growing your own food is a very enriching experience! Here are some benefits:

- Encourages you to eat healthy and be outside

- Helps you develop a connection with nature

- Gives you an activity where you can relax and be calm

- You get fresh food right off the plant

- Helps the environment by cutting transportation emissions

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Tips for Growing - My daughter started a vegetable garden last year (2020). Here are some things she learned:

- Start small, you can always expand your garden!

- If you have a small yard or a balcony, you can still grow your own food using vertical or hanging planters.

- You don't have to grow plants in pots or the ground! You can re-purpose plastic boxes or buckets. Just make sure that they are food safe (If the box had food in it then it should be food safe).

- Soil is not a must. You can try hydroponics, which eliminates the use of soil while growing plants.

- Grow organically. This helps the environment and improves your health. Use organic seeds, soil, fertilizer, and pesticides.

- Encourage beneficial insects and animals. This gives you pesticide-free pest control.

- Make your own compost. There are so many ways to compost, making it easy to do even in small spaces.

- Do your own research and ask others. The internet has lots of info from step-by-step tutorials to helpful tips. Getting advice from other gardeners really helps, as they are experienced and can provide valuable information.

- Finally, share your food with others. The feeling you get when you give your food to someone else, like a neighbor, is priceless.

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Here are some pictures of our garden, Happy Gardening!