I know it's a bit of a bonkers topic to throw onto a website for people who want to grow their own, but I've actually met many gardeners who don't grow their own because of the advantages but because they want to.
My reasons to grow your own should be shared with everyone. Let's get more people growing their own!
So if you have friends or family members who are in that state of indecision and don't know whether to start growing their own or not, then reel off this list of 7 reasons everyone should seriously think about growing their own at home.
Reason #1 - It's Cheaper than Buying from the Big Supermarkets
First of all, you can't just do a comparison of how much a bag of carrots costs you to buy in the supermarket compared to how much it costs you to sow some carrot seeds. Yes, already this growing your own is cheaper. But you also have to consider the quality of the vegetables you are growing. More often than not, you will grow organic which would naturally increase the supermarket price also.
Provided that you spend time getting great yields from your efforts then it can in fact be cheaper than the supermarkets, especially when you look at the quality of what you are getting and the freedom.
In fact, a poll organised by B&Q suggested that people who grow their own spent £9 roughly on fruit and vegetables a week, whereas people who didn't grow their own spent £13 roughly.
Reason #2 - Local Produce is Better Produce
And it certainly doesn't get any more local than your very own garden. There's something incredibly special about local produce and more than ever before, we're being pushed to buy local. So why not just grow local instead? But what is the advantage of buying growing locally? The problem with buying from your local big supermarket is that the food has travelled from here, there and everywhere. Tomatoes from Morocco. Cucumbers from Spain. Cabbage from Romania.
This is not good! Not good at all! Especially when these food miles are not necessary in the slightest. These miles can be completely cut and turned to zero, simply by growing your own produce.
Reason #3 - Know Exactly What Goes into your Fruit and Vegetables
If you spray your vegetables with a concoction of chemicals then you know that your vegetables will contain those chemicals. If you don't spray your vegetables at all then you know you'll have organic vegetables. This is one of the greatest advantages of growing your own and that is you have full control over what goes on with your vegetables which is something you are not blessed with if you choose to buy from the supermarket.
Reason #4 - Access to a Complete Variety of Fruit and Vegetables
So you pop into a particular supermarket and you go down the fruit and vegetable aisle, you see red tomatoes, your bog standard broccoli calabrese and frozen peas (can you get fresh peas?) That's why I LOVE growing my own because of all the varieties I can grow in my garden that are not available anywhere, unless you can pop to Selfridges or Harrods.
Varieties that I grow include the following:
- Romanesco Broccoli
- Cylindra Beetroot
- Round and Cosmic Purple Carrots
- Kohl Rabi
- Yellow Courgettes
- Cardoon
- Many Varieties of Tomato, from Black to Yellow
- Elephant Garlic
- Long Red Onions
That's NINE varieties I grow in the garden that are unlikely to be available in the supermarkets. And that's actually the main reason for me choosing to grow these types of vegetables. Dinners have never been so exciting... No, really!
Reason #5 - Teach Children and Grand Children about what they Eat
It's scary how little many children know about vegetables. I remember a TV Programme in a school where the presenter held up a leek. Nothing quirky about a leek? These children were shouting out Celery, Onion, Garlic, Asparagus...
That is why I think growing your own with a family is an even greater advantage. Finally, your children will know that their vegetables don't suddenly appear but they have to be grown and harvested. They will also learn about the different varieties of vegetables that are available.
Reason #6 - No Wasting of Food that you've Bought
You pick what you want, as and when you want it. The problem with buying from the supermarket is that you often buy far too much. If you buy a bag of carrots you might end up with 7, 8 or 9 carrots, most of which you really don't want or need. A few days later, you've got this woody and mouldy carrots in your fridge that are ready for the bin.
The beauty of growing your own is that you grow what you want and you pick the things you need. If a particular recipes calls for 1 onion then you can go into the garden and pull out just the 1 onion. No fruit and vegetables will find its way to the bin if you grow your own.
Reason #7 - It's Free Exercise (Well Almost Free)
Besides the cost of your compost and seeds, growing your own is a free gym. No huge membership fees or extravagant equipment to buy. It's free! It's unbelievable how tiring gardening can get, especially when preparing soil and moving compost for example. SO by growing your own, you can exercise and produce some delicious food from you garden.
There's 7 reasons for growing your own, but perhaps you have a friend or family member who isn't convinced... It isn't cool to grow your own.
Then tell them this, over 25% of the country grow their own something or other. Whether it just a few herbs or a full on small holding. Growing vegetables at home is becoming trendy (not that I'm one for following the crowd but it might persuade some more people who are currently sitting on the fence).
If you do find yourself still struggling to Grow your Own, or if you want more free information then visit Grow This N That for your collection of completely free Grow your Own guides. Click Here to grab yours now!
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Janet_Hurrason
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