The problem with healthy eating is that it can often be expensive, especially when you want to load up on fresh vegetables. Even after springing for a bountiful of produce, many of us then watch our hard earned cash go down the drain as the food spoils before you can eat it. FitBritt's solution is to grow your own vegetables and fresh herbs. Growing your own vegetable garden saves you a ton of money, ensures freshness and allows you to pick only what you need to avoid spoilage.
If you have a nice big backyard, find a spot that is exposed to plenty of sun and create a plot by digging up the soil and getting rid of any large rocks. Then add store-bought potting soil to the ground in order to promote growth. Worried about predators eating your vegetables? You can construct a fence around the garden to keep animals out but remember some animals, like rabbits are good at digging so make sure the fence extends at least a foot under the ground. Another option is to use chicken wire over individual plants.
Is your problem no space for a garden? You can still grow your own vegetables by using containers and placing them on a balcony or patio or windowsill. For those of you really cramped for space, look for community gardens. Many cities have plots of land available for citizens to use for the purpose of gardening. Check you city's webpage for further information.
Now the question is what to grow. Fresh herbs can cost as much as $2 for a bunch and most often its not possible to get through the entire bunch before it goes bad. Popular herbs to grow are basil, parsley, mint, thyme and cilantro. A good tip here is to find a plant either at a local nursery or even your grocery store and then transplant the plant into your soil. Besides growing herbs, some great fresh veggies include tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, radishes and peppers. Just make sure that what you plant will grow in your region and at the time of year when you plan to plant them.
For more information on growing a vegetable and herb garden check out these useful websites or ask an expert at your local gardening store or nursery:
WikiHow: How to Grow Your Own Vegetables
My Great Home This site has some good information on growing vegetables in a small space
How Stuff Works- Growing Your Own Vegetables
Fit Tip: Gardening is also a great activity to burn calories. So not only are you getting healthy food but you are also saving money and getting some mild exercise!
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Well, FitBritt, I was thinking of creating my own garden this year so your tips are timely! What do you know about the nutrients in our food source? Are store bought foods depleted in nutrients or are they OK?
ReplyDeleteHollywoodStar, exellent question. Store bought foods inevitably lose nutrients from the time they are picked, packaged, sold in wholesale and then sold in retail. That being said, store bought foods do still contain high nutritional contents and if you eat plenty of foods containing the essential vitamins and minerals, you will maintain a well-balanced and nutrition-filled diet. However, if you have the ability to eat food freshly picked, you will certainly benefit from the incredible boost of nutrition that is retained when the food is not handled by so many entities before it reaches your kitchen. Also, remember frozen foods do retain a significant amount of nutritional content when they are picked and frozen, although they too risk some nutritional loss.
ReplyDeletePlanting your own garden will definitely help you get the highest nutrition content from your vegetables. Also, shopping at farmer's markets, see Frugal Fitness's post from April 16th, will help cut out a lot the middle-people, which can lead to nutrition loss due to the time it takes for you to get the produce. Stay tuned to Friday's Food for more suggestions on getting healthy and fresh food.