My dad has grown a garden every year since I can remember. When I was younger, I would usually help him plant the seeds and then not visit the garden again until time to harvest the crops. I have strung more green beans and shucked more corn than I could ever eat. However, I never took much interest in gardening back then. I believe it was because my dad's garden was "his" and I was always afraid of doing the wrong thing and killing our food. Plus, I thought of processing the food more as a chore or something that I had to do, instead of something that I wanted to do.
A lot has changed since then. Now, I have moved out of my parent's house and am living (and preparing food) on my own. I work for a nonprofit organization where one of the biggest parts of my job is to purchase produce from farmers to give to those less-fortunate within the state. A combination of these factors are what have got me thinking about food on a daily basis. I see it from both sides of the spectrum...from farm to table, so to speak. I see the struggles that farmers face. I know how much work they put into a crop just to potentially see it all destroyed by insects or the weather. I understand more now about how difficult it can be for a low-income family to provide fresh, nutritious meals for their children. When a 6-pack of Ramen noodles is cheaper than an apple, you are going to choose the Ramen over the apple, because one apple won't feed your entire family.
All of this being said, I feel that there is no better time than now for me to start growing my own food. I currently live in a subdivision and have a small yard, but it should be plenty large enough to grow the amount of food that I will be able to consume as one person. Most of my plants are going to be grown in containers. I currently have planted Swiss chard, bell peppers, yellow squash, and tomatoes, and am starting a small herb garden (all using organic practices). If I have extra, I will give it away, either to friends or the local food pantry. I have already begin sharing seeds and seedlings with friends and family who are also interested in gardening.
In the future, I would like to grow more produce so that I will be able to share more of it. For now, I think it's best that I start small, though, since I don't really know 100% what I am doing. I would like to get to a point where I am knowledgeable enough about it that I can teach others how to grow their own food as well. People need to have more of a connection with their food. Even if they don't grow it themselves, they should at least know where it came from and what it had to go through to get on their plate.
There is so much more I could say about this and so many more directions that I could go with this post, but I don't want to overwhelm you, so I'll stop for now. I'll leave you with a photo of my heirloom crooked neck squash seedlings that I planted on March 13th. It's amazing how much they have grown!
A lot has changed since then. Now, I have moved out of my parent's house and am living (and preparing food) on my own. I work for a nonprofit organization where one of the biggest parts of my job is to purchase produce from farmers to give to those less-fortunate within the state. A combination of these factors are what have got me thinking about food on a daily basis. I see it from both sides of the spectrum...from farm to table, so to speak. I see the struggles that farmers face. I know how much work they put into a crop just to potentially see it all destroyed by insects or the weather. I understand more now about how difficult it can be for a low-income family to provide fresh, nutritious meals for their children. When a 6-pack of Ramen noodles is cheaper than an apple, you are going to choose the Ramen over the apple, because one apple won't feed your entire family.
All of this being said, I feel that there is no better time than now for me to start growing my own food. I currently live in a subdivision and have a small yard, but it should be plenty large enough to grow the amount of food that I will be able to consume as one person. Most of my plants are going to be grown in containers. I currently have planted Swiss chard, bell peppers, yellow squash, and tomatoes, and am starting a small herb garden (all using organic practices). If I have extra, I will give it away, either to friends or the local food pantry. I have already begin sharing seeds and seedlings with friends and family who are also interested in gardening.
In the future, I would like to grow more produce so that I will be able to share more of it. For now, I think it's best that I start small, though, since I don't really know 100% what I am doing. I would like to get to a point where I am knowledgeable enough about it that I can teach others how to grow their own food as well. People need to have more of a connection with their food. Even if they don't grow it themselves, they should at least know where it came from and what it had to go through to get on their plate.
There is so much more I could say about this and so many more directions that I could go with this post, but I don't want to overwhelm you, so I'll stop for now. I'll leave you with a photo of my heirloom crooked neck squash seedlings that I planted on March 13th. It's amazing how much they have grown!
I'll be back soon to update you on the status of my garden. Feel free to comment if you have any questions or are interested in starting your own garden. I can help refer you to some of the resources that I have been using for help. Hint: reading Vegetable Gardening for Dummies is a good first step!
Until next time,
-Miss Ellaneous
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