This year, figure out how to supply yourself with all or most of one food or plant product – for a season or for the year. What can you grow within the confines of your current home/living space? What is your favorite vegetable, herbs, or fruit? What do you love to eat? What do you want to have on hand? What can you find or forage from the neighborhood close by?
I love herbs for cooking, both fresh and dried. Parsley, chives, thyme, rosemary, mint and so many more can easily be grown on a sunny window sill, counter, table top or in a floor pot. For some places vertical growing is an easy answer on a sunny wall – inside or out. When you grow herbs, you can easily dry them, save them, and give the excess as gifts to others. Start small. Look at your herbs and see which one is used the most. Plan on having a supply of parsley (for instance) that you grow for yourself – in time to replace the dried herb in the cabinet when it runs out.
If you have a wall outside or planters, think about what you can grow that you enjoy eating. Peas can climb a wall, as can green beans, squash, cucumbers, and melons. You will need some support – I’ve used a cotton 4″ square netting to grow even heavy winter squash successfully. You can even let them mature in the gutter or on the roof if you can harvest them there safely.
Green beans are wonderful fresh, frozen, fermented and pickled. They are even good dried! Figure out how many servings of green beans you want for the year and then find out how many plantings you need in the space you have. You can make a Teepee on the deck with tall bamboo poles stuck in pots with 3 beans in each pot.
Most cities have fruit trees, grapevines, and berries that have been planted by others and are still bearing. Find ones near you (an apple tree, berry bush, or grape vines for instance) and keep an eye on them. When they are full of fruit, ask if you can harvest it and offer some to the home owner if they want some. I frequently find the home owner is glad to be ‘rid’ of them because they are making a mess!
So for now start small with a favorite herb, some veggies in a pot, or a dwarf fruit tree and learn how to take care of them. Enjoy the fruits of your effort, and then see if you want to do more. Please ask a salesperson if what you are buying is free of systemic pesticides. No one needs to eat anymore poisons!
I’d love to hear from you and learn what you have decided to grow and where you are growing it. Maybe you can team up with neighbors and each person grow a different food then share. Taking charge of any part of your food supply is an important step so get growing! Happy New Year!
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