With the Hysteria in full swing supermarkets are selling out of food supplies, It would be grand if we could all live on a few acres in the country, grow our own food in an organic garden out back, grow cotton and hemp and raise sheep to make our clothes and keep a goat around to mow the lawn and be very nearly self-sufficient; unfortunately, that's not the way it works for many of us, who live dense urban areas or slightly less dense suburban areas and simply don't have the space and time to plant, grow, harvest and process everything we need. But we can do many things at home, urban or country like growing vegies at home. I also just got a copy of Food Diy by Tim Hayward, im very blessed my Partner hunts 7 is a kean fisherman, so we have a freezer of organic Venison,fish, Pork, Pheasants, we invested in a vac pack machine, which does an amazing job of sealing the meat well.. This book by Tim is a amazing guide to how to make everything your self, from sausages, Salami, smoking, making home smokers, list goes on .
Organic food is growing in popularity - try growing your own for things you eat regularly like salad greens and herbs. Create a mini organic patch in some large containers and maximise the natural goodness in your garden, It's a fun way that you can reduce your carbon footprint is by growing your own food environmental benefits of growing your own food right from your own backyard and how you can “Go Green” by avoiding conventional methods of consuming food!
Reducing Carbon Emissions and Waste
Growing your own food allows you to stop relying solely on traditional methods of purchasing your produce from a grocery store. When you buy foods from these shops, you should take into consideration the sad, but true, fact that these foods travel an average of 1,500+ miles before ever being consumed. Not only does this impact the freshness and flavor of the food, but more importantly, this emits dangerous amounts of carbon emissions and waste associated with air freight and other transportation methods into the atmosphere.
By growing your own food, you are helping to reduce the high amounts of burning fossil fuels that fill our environment as a direct result of importing foods from commercial farmers. You also are reducing waste from food packaging materials such as man-made plastics and cardboard, that also travel hundreds and thousands of miles.
Avoid Carcinogenic Pesticides and Fertilizers
By growing your own food, you’ll get peace of mind knowing what you are eating and what has gone into producing that item. Not only does commercial farming emit harmful chemicals into the air as mentioned above, but it also pours harmful chemicals into our soil and water. Conventional farming utilizes an extreme amount of pesticides and synthetic fertilizers to grow their commercialized crops, filling our earth and the foods that we are consuming with harmful chemicals, some that have even been proven to cause cancer and other diseases.
By growing your own garden, you are the one to decide what goes on your plants and into your soil, allowing you to reduce the amount of harmful chemicals polluting our environment and waterways. Organically growing your own food is sustainable and nourishes your soil by using safe and natural fertilizers and products.
Other Benefits
Growing your own food, especially for the first time, opens up a great learning opportunity. In order to help your crops flourish, you have the chance to learn about the weather and other environmental factors that may not have been relevant for you to be aware of before. This can also be a fun, family task to take on to make an environmental impact together and to teach your children the importance of going green.
Show Your Environment Some Love
This Earth Day, take a step towards “Going Green” in your home and give growing some of your own food a try. Keep our air, water, and soil clean by helping to reduce the demands put on our land every day by commercial agriculture. Make a positive impact on our environment today!
SEEDLINGS TO PLANT NOW PRE WINTER:
- Leafy Greens – silver beet, kale, spinach, pak choi, miners lettuce -choose plants as seeds will take far longer to germinate now temperatures are cooler. Crops will be ready to harvest in 6-12 weeks.
- Brassicas – broccoli, cabbage and cauliflower can all be planted now. Give these larger crops more room to grow - plant 30-50 cm apart. Purple sprouting broccoli is relatively new on the scene and taste fabulous, with its come-again cropping capacity it’s hard to go past. Harvest 12-16 weeks.
- Lettuce - red oak and drunken lady are both pretty and reliable, red frilly lettuces are the best ones to choose for winter crops. Plant 20 cm apart in the garden, or cram them a bit closer together in pots and pick leaf by leaf as soon as they look big enough. Harvest 6-10 weeks.
- Celery – crisp, hardy and economical on space, celery enjoys plenty of rich organic matter, harvest stalk by stalk if desired, full head takes 12-16 weeks to mature
- Beetroot – a versatile crop, where both the leaves and roots can be eaten, beetroot copes with cool soils and shorter days. It prefers free draining soil, so in damp areas consider planting it in pots or adding grit to the soil before planting. Or provide a tunnel house or cloche during heavy periods of rain. Harvest 8-16 weeks.
You can read u can read more about the Biointensive Method way to plant seeds here
