We all know there are many health benefits from eating lots of fresh fruit and vegetables, right? While there are a variety of ways to help boost your fresh fruit and veggie intake, I would like to discuss one of those ideas: growing your very own!
Spring is the perfect time to start planning your garden. Gardening can be a great way to get physical activity, it can be a good learning experience for your children, it’s easy on your food budget, and—let’s be honest, who wouldn’t prefer to eat a tomato fresh from the garden?
The website of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (eatright.org) has a helpful article for gardening beginners: http://www.eatright.org/Public/content.aspx?id=6442474578
They recommend these four steps when starting a vegetable garden:
- Calculate the space you have available. You will need an area that gets adequate sun, as most vegetable plants need at least six hours of full sun.
- Determine which varieties of plants do best in your particular conditions. You could ask a neighbor or someone at a nursery for help with this.
- Determine your soil quality. A variety of testing kits are available to determine if your soil needs to be reinforced with nutrients.
- Start small. Even if you have limited space, you can grow produce in containers. Here is a great resource for information on container gardening: http://www.clemson.edu/extension/hgic/plants/vegetables/gardening/hgic1251.html
With a little preparation and work, you will be on your way to enjoying your own home-grown, delicious fresh produce!