A veggie garden is a great way to save money on groceres. Here's how you can start!
A veggie garden is a wonderful way to save money on groceries long term. As the seasons change, and your garden grows and develops, you’ll get to enjoy the fruits of your labour, literally. Garden fresh fruit and vegetables are often more vibrant, juicier and tastier than their grocery store counterparts. You’ll be amazed! This guide is designed to help you understand the benefits of starting and maintaining a veggie garden, so you can save money and enjoy fresh fruit and vegetables from your backyard.
Benefits of a Veggie Garden
1. Save Money on Groceries
The more fruit and vegetables you plant the more variety you’ll be able to grow and the less produce you’ll need to purchase from the grocery store. Fruit and vegetable crops tend to get better each year, so you’ll need to be patient. But your efforts will reward you.
2. Avoid Waste
Do you ever buy a bag of spinach and it’s just too much for your household for the week, so the spinach goes bad? With a veggie garden, you’ll be able to just harvest what you need, and can avoid creating waste. The best part is your fruit and vegetables will always be fresh!
3. Sense of Accomplishment
Imagine being able to host a family dinner using ingredients from your garden? It is something to be proud of. You are reducing your use of pesticides, reducing your carbon footprint by avoiding getting produce from a grocery store, which often had to travel great distances to arrive at your local, and ultimately, you are helping your family save money on weekly groceries. This can help you achieve many facets of well-being, helping encourage healthy eating and healthy financial choices that you will continue to benefit from for many years.
Tips for Starting a Veggie Garden
1. Choose the Right Location
It’s always a good idea to consider your garden space, and location. Choose a spot with plenty of sunshine, a place where the soil drains well and doesn’t pool, and a place that is sheltered from the wind as much as possible. Don’t forget a nutrient rich soil. Mix in plenty of vegetable matter to help the health of your soil, and give your plants the best place to grow.
2. Start Small!
It’s always a good idea to start small so you don’t overwhelm yourself, and can practise caring for a fewer number of plants first to get yourself used to the process. If you are creating a garden in the ground, make sure you establish paths that allow you access to each row without having to step over soil.
3. Start Easy
If you are a true novice, you may want to avoid diving into the deep end by starting with vegetables that are easier to grow. Lettuce, green beans, tomatoes (from a plant nursery transplant), zucchini and carrots are all great options to start with. You could also try with herbs such as basil, chives, and spring onions. Mint is another fast grower, but plant this one separately from others as it can invade its neighbours and cause issues! Also make sure to plant what your family will actually eat. Don’t plant brussel sprouts if no one will eat them.
4. Cool and Warm Weather Vegetables
Keep your harvest full year round by choosing to plant vegetables that grow in cold or warm weather. For example, in the early spring, grow lettuce, peas, carrots or broccoli. Once those have been harvested, you can plant hot weather plants such as tomatoes and basil. Potatoes and cabbage grow well in autumn.
5. Add Compost to your Soil
Compost is a mix of fungi, bacteria and vegetable matter that promotes healthy plants, and helps them thrive and grow so they can live longer and produce years of crops for your family. You can purchase compost, or use a compost bin for your food scraps and make your own.
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