The Benefits of Growing Your Own Veggies

Buying veggies from the grocery store is often a gamble. The produce may not be as fresh as you’d expect, suppliers could change (and thus, the quality of the vegetables), and the price can fluctuate due to supply and demand.

Growing your own veggies is a better alternative. It offers nutritional and economic benefits, plus you can always do your own quality-control to make sure you reap and eat only the best Mother Nature has to offer. Below are more pros of starting a vegetable garden.

Plant fresh, reap fresh.

What could be fresher than a carrot, cucumber, or tomato picked from your own garden plot in the backyard, and then washed and prepared/cooked straightaway? The best thing about it is that you literally know where your next meal is coming from! There’s no second guessing involved as to where and under what conditions they were grown. You can rest assured that your vegetables are fresh, flavorful, and ripe for the picking because you cared for them yourself. Plus, you can effortlessly re-grow your vegetables from the cuttings of your previous harvest.

Avoid harmful chemicals.

You can never really be sure if store-bought produce was marinated in pesticide and synthetic fertilizers - even when an “organic” sticker is slapped on it! When you plant and reap your own veggies, you know it’s free of harmful chemicals and naturally grown.

Stick to a healthy diet.

There’s a certain pride in gardening and reaping what you’ve grown and making the produce a part of your daily menu. Replacing packaged and processed food with fresh vegetables and fruit can improve your overall health and protect you from illnesses. The vitamins, minerals, and other nutrients in fresh produce have been known to reduce the risk of diabetes, cancer, heart diseases, and to improve skin, hair, muscles, and eyesight.

Eat within your budget.

As previously mentioned, consumers are often at the mercy of fluctuating prices. Climate change can wreak havoc on harvest schedules, there could be transportation problems, and other circumstances could affect the price of a tomato or broccoli in a snap. When you plant your own veggies, you are mostly in control of the situation, and you don’t have to deal with third party pricing in order to enjoy your own produce. Having your own vegetable garden means you can save up on gas and trips to the grocery store, as well.

Reduce carbon footprint.

There is a significant amount of carbon footprint involved in buying produce from the grocery store or any commercial place - even if on the surface it seems like a healthy option. There’s almost 8% of carbon footprint involved in food alone (packaging, waste, etc.). Add to that the nearly 29% of carbon footprint involved in food transportation, and you realize that growing your own food is a practical alternative so you can significantly cut down on this staggering percentage. As much as 70% of carbon dioxide a year can be reduced with growing around 20% of your own food, not relying on gasoline to transport it, and making compost from organic food waste to keep your garden soil fertile.