Simple Stimulus Steps to Greening-n-Saving

Believe it. Small growing efforts can begin to help your budget and your life! No really! Herb and vegetable gardening can not only make an impact on your grocery bill, but it can also provide an entertaining focus for the family. It's easy to grasp the grocery bill-reducer part, you say, but providing entertainment for the family sounds a bit out there!

Hear me out. Watching plants grow and being a part of their care is a fun challenge, stimulates curiosity, and provides daily bonding time for the whole family, even tweens and teens. Plus, there is an energizing “Anticipation Factor.” It happens naturally. Anticipation builds as you begin to look forward to picking and eating your very own herbs, tomatoes, onions, peppers, green beans, zucchini, etc. Not only that, you get to use them to "green-up" and enhance the taste of special homemade recipes, transforming them into fantastic comfort foods! Can you smell the aroma of freshly picked zucchini and tomatoes, sautéed with fresh basil and garlic, coming from the family dinner table?

So, do you want to consider greening up, saving on produce, and boosting the "Anticipation Factor" at your house? Here are a few simple options:

1.) Start seeds indoors. Later, bring them outdoors when they are a few inches tall.

2.) Buy small herb and vegetable plants. In clay pots, plant them   in potting soil laced with fertilizer and place in a sunny spot. ALWAYS water and fertilize! It gives the plant roots a terrific jump start!

3.) Arrange three different heights of herb-filled clay pots on a sunny deck, balcony, patio, or garden bed. It's practical for watering and creates a dramatic focal point anywhere you put it.

4.) Place a window box full of herbs near the kitchen door. It will be a snap to pick a few herbs to add to the pot while you are cooking. How fresh is that!

5.) Take a few minutes to observe your plants. WATER EVERY DAY unless it rains. No missing. It is critical. You will be amazed how fast they grow!

Choose one or all of these simple steps to get you started. You may find yourself sharing some fresh pickings with your friends and neighbors after they've tasted those yummy homemade dishes at your house. You may even find yourself trading your herbs and veggies for other varieties from friends doing the same thing. Who knows? You may even go so far as rallying your friends to start a neighborhood plot for next year!

Greening-n-saving can start from a simple step. Need some encouragement? Come to Pickering and we'll help you get started right away. Pickering will be sure to thank you. Your family and friends, and maybe even your community, will thank you too!

Written by Bonnie Gregus 3-5-09
Pickering Valley Feed & Farm