10 Great Reasons to Grow a Garden (or grow something)

10 Reasons to Grow a Garden

The raised bed garden May 2019

Free, organic, fresh food is one reason to garden – but it’s not the only one!

Gardening is such a fulfilling pastime.  Whether you want to grow some veggies, flowers, or a few herbs in containers on your back porch – you will be glad did!

Here are ten reasons you should start growing something –

ONE – FREE FOOD!

Gardening will save you money.

Not only will gardening provide you with free produce, but you can also grow heirloom, retired, and unusual plants that are not available at the average market.

There are some tricks to making the savings even more substantial

1. Start your garden plants from seed.  Many varieties (cucumbers, beans, squash zucchini, beets, radishes, kale, lettuces, turnips and more) can easily be started from seed.  Sowing seeds is super easy and will only cost you cents.
2. Commit to eating food from your garden.  Say no to your personal whims, avoid supermarkets, and eat what you grow.
3. Stick with easy to grow plants.  Starting with worry-free plants will make your gardening adventures more successful and enjoyable.  You will grow more food with less effort.  For a list of easy plants to grow go HERE.

TWO – BOLD HERBS (for the kitchen or medicine cabinet)

Creating a little herb garden is so easy and fantastic to have.  Fresh herbs are much more fragrant and flavorful than what you buy at a store.

Herb gardens come in all shapes and sizes.  There are culinary herb gardens, medicinal herb gardens, relaxation herb gardens, decorative herb gardens and more!

An herb garden can be tucked in the corner of the landscaping, a window sill, in pots or a dedicated spot in the vegetable garden.

You don’t need much space, experience or time to have a great herb garden.

THREE – FARM FRESH FOOD

By now the world knows that farm to table is the best way to eat.

We know that vitamins and nutrients are lost if-

• the produce is picked before it is ripe
• if it travels on trucks
• if it is stored in refrigeration for significant periods of time
• and if it is radiated (this often happens before hitting the grocer’s displays to ripen)

When we grow our own food, it is picked when ripe.  It’s eaten at the peak of goodness.  It doesn’t travel.  It isn’t stored for weeks.  It isn’t radiated.  It is probably grown in a more eco-friendly environment.

AND It has less (or no) unhealthy pesticides or chemicals on it.

TASTE

Not only is fresh food better for you – it will always taste better.

Like sensationally better.

FOUR – IT’S ORGANIC

I love to know how my food is grown.  These days, even organic labeled foods can contain residues of chemical pesticides or fungicides.  There are so many chemicals now available for organic growers.  Chemicals that we may not want to ingest.

A sure way to know exactly how your food was grown and what it was exposed to is to grow it yourself.

ECO-FRIENDLY

Growing some food with organic methods is not only good for you – it is good for the environment.  When you chose to grow organically you are reducing the chemicals on the water supply, the ground, and the earth.

FIVE – BRIGHT AND BEAUTIFUL

If you ask me, the prettiest part of my farm is the gardens.

When I lived in a neighborhood they made me remove my garden because our HOA was against them.  I get it.  Gardens get a bad rap for being unkempt, dirt plots riddled with weeds.

They don’t have to be.

Dripping with color, fastened with raised beds and punctuated with walking paths, a garden can be the most charming feature in a yard or homestead.

Growing can be more than a love of fresh produce or seasonings.  It can be purely to beautify your property.  I adore growing in containers and have them littered around the perimeter of my home.  I have pots filled with flowers, herbs, and vines.

I fill my vegetable gardens with flowers and fill my flower gardens with herbs.  They serve me with cooking supplies (herbs), amazing aromas, brilliant colors, stunning scenery and they bring hummingbirds and butterflies to my backyard.

SIX – EXERCISE

Whether you are growing a small or large garden, it is guaranteed to get you outdoors and moving.

Planting, topdressing, mulching, harvesting – it is all good for you.

Just being outdoors increases your oxygen intake, provides vitamin D (from the sun) and will lift your spirits.  We live in a time when people live indoors.  They stare at screens, communicate with texts and drive in air-conditioned vehicles.  I’m not suggesting we all get horse and buggies or sell our computers.

I just think we should go outside and play.

SEVEN – A QUIET PLACE

Many of you may have quiet homes where you can read, have uninterrupted conversations and complete a thought.

I do not.

If I want to be alone – my garden is usually a good place to do it.

When I am in my gardens time seems to disappear and I feel God.  Being a part of his creation and playing a role in the cultivation of it feeds my soul.  We can plant, we can water, but only God makes the seed grow.

EIGHT – IT’S SCIENCE

Believe it or not, gardening is science.  For years and years, I did not teach formal “science” in my homeschool.  We LIVED science.  There were cows to inseminate, eggs to incubate, seeds to sprout, and dozens of other farm chores that took the place of books.

It’s magic.

From the first seed that sprouts to the biggest pumpkin at harvest time.  It is like watching a miracle each year as the garden comes to life and produces our food.

NINE – LIFE SKILLS THAT COUNT

Even if you aren’t a prepper, you can agree that knowing how to provide for yourself is pretty darn cool.

I love that I know how to grow food.  I know how to cure it, how to store it, preserve it and freeze it. Eating from your land year round is a lost skill that I am so happy to be teaching to my children.

If all the stores closed – We could go on.  And You can too!

TEN – JOY

When you have a manicured garden (especially if it includes raised beds) your garden will be your favorite place to be.

Deep mulch, healthy soil and plenty of sunshine make a garden easy and fun.

Gardening is not just a means of healthy food.  Having a garden can make your life better.

It’s true.

When I set out on my personal journey to grow my own food I just wanted to see if I could do it.  What I found was a better way to live.

There is great satisfaction in planting seeds, tending a garden and watching it nourish your family.

Take my word for it,  when you serve a meal that you not only “cooked” but also raised yourself – nothing else compares.

I’m not trying to be all “salesey” on ya, but if you want to learn how to grow your food – you should join the Organic Gardening Class.  Whether you have never planted anything, or you are an experienced gardener looking to expand- the Organic Gardening Class will show you how to successfully produce your own groceries.  It is happening now and it’s not too late to join.  I’d love to have you there!

Happy Gardening Y’all!

XO,

Candi