Grow Your Own

Four Good Reasons to Grow Your Own:

1. Environmental Footprint

Strawberries airfreighted in from Peru; Brazilian beef produced on land that was once rainforest; chickens reared indoors with barely enough room to stand; perfect vegetables grown using chemical pesticides and fertilisers; supermarkets trucking produce hundreds of miles to and from centralised distribution centres; just a few examples of how our globalised food industry is at odds with living a “green” lifestyle.

By growing your own food, you reduce your food miles to virtually nil, and you have 100% knowledge and control over what’s gone into what you eat.  You’re helping to combat global warming, deforestation and poor animal welfare standards at the same time – a real win-win solution.

2. Food Security

In 2008, food prices soared worldwide.  A number of factors were at work – the record high oil price led to increased transport costs and fertilisers, while at the same time increasing the incentive to send food crops for biofuel conversion.  Poor grain harvests also contributed.

In January 2010, The Secretary of State for the Environment unveiled the UK’s first ever Food Strategy Paper, in part as a response to growing concerns about food security.

With a growing population, overexploitation of fish stocks, climate change and rising energy costs, the likelihood is that we’ll see more food price spikes and even food shortages in the coming years.  In which case, the more food you can produce for yourself, the more food secure you and your family will be.

3. Health & Quality

A recent study commissioned by the Food Standards Agency concluded that there was no evidence that organic food is better for you than conventionally produced food.

When it comes to home grown food however, I beg to differ.

As soon as you pick or pull a fruit or vegetable, it starts to deteriorate.  Sugars start to convert to starch, vitamin content starts to fall.  You will never eat a pea sweeter than the one you just picked off the plant.  Having fresh – I mean straight-from-the-garden-fresh – salads and vegetables in your meals really does make a difference.  Supermarket produce – organic or otherwise – just can’t compete.  As for the kids, well they’ll happily munch their way round the garden, eating fresh fruit and veg they’d normally shun on a dinner plate, and coming back for more.

Of course the slugs, snails and birds are also well aware of the quality of home-grown produce, and will compete with you for a share in the bounty; but there are ways and ways of dealing with unwanted guests in the garden.

And quite apart from any nutritional benefit, you’ll also be outside in the fresh air getting some good exercise (for free, unlike a gym membership).  You may also be able to get the kids involved and away from the telly or the wii for a change.

4. Satisfaction

Speaking from experience, there are few things more satisfying than eating a meal where every item on the plate has come from your own land, produced by your own efforts.  I would recommend it without hesitation.

Of course, 100% food self-sufficiency is unrealistic for most people; but whatever your circumstances, there are steps you can take to raise more of your own food.

Here are a few things for you to consider before setting out on that journey.

What do you want to achieve?

Having a clear idea of what your goals are, and why they’re important to you, can help to keep you focussed and motivated.  Putting your thoughts down on paper will also help clarify what it is you want to do.

What relevant assets do you have?

Do you have enough space to achieve all your goals?  If not, can you get access to more (for example an allotment, or via Landshare)?

What tools and equipment do you have?  It’s worth investing in the right kit up front – it will save you time and effort.

What relevant skills and knowledge do you have?  For example, if you’re a DIYer, could you build your own raised beds or chicken coop?  This could save you a fair bit of money when you start setting up to raise your own food.

What’s your budget?  It does cost money to set yourself up to grow your own.  The more ambitious you are in what you want to achieve, unfortunately the more it will cost to get there.  This is another good reason to start small and build over time.

How much time are you prepared to devote to it?

There’s no doubt that growing or raising your own takes more time and effort than popping down the shops and buying it.  Be realistic about how much time you’re prepared to set aside, and what you can achieve with that time.  Start small, see how it goes and build up from there to a level you’re comfortable with.

If you don’t have prior experience of growing food or keeping livestock, it’s also worth starting with things that are relatively easy: raspberries, a fruit tree, onions and garlic, courgettes before cauliflowers and grapes.  Get used to looking after chickens before stepping up to sheep or pigs.

Don’t re-invent the wheel

You may be a newcomer to growing vegetables, or keeping chickens; but there are plenty of people with experience out there who are only too happy to share their expertise, and lots of books available too.  Do your homework, and listen to what they have to say; you’ll avoid a lot of mistakes and frustration, and save yourself a lot of time and effort as well.

Have confidence!

A lot of mystery has built up about where our food comes from.  People assume it’s difficult, but in fact it’s not.  Plants want to grow; they just need a little help.  And if you’ve kept a guinea pig or a dog, you’re quite capable of looking after chickens or pigs.  Don’t be afraid of growing your own food – it’s a lot easier than most people expect!

If you’d like some practical advice on how to take the next steps towards self-sufficiency, Ecocetera provide a consultancy service you may be interested in.

From what you can achieve in your own back garden, to planning a smallholding, we’d be very happy to talk to you about how we can help.