FORGET FOOD SECURITY, SUPPLY. BECOME A ‘LOCALVORE’ — GROW YOUR OWN GARDEN VEGGIES

“Grandfather had a farm; his son had a garden and his grandson has a can opener. NOW, his great granddaughter has a garden.”

NANCY THOMPSON | How does your garden grow?

Chatter and concerns about food security and supply — along with COVID isolation and the movement toward locally-grown produce — are encouraging more of us to dabble in growing our own.

Nothing could be more local — or make you more of a “localvore” — than eating produce that comes from your own garden.

Vegetable gardens have become one of the hottest trends in the country. Many are putting in their own vegetable plots, whilst others are using community gardens to grow fresh food.

Growing edibles amongst your flowers, on your patio/balcony or in hanging baskets or even in a pot on your window sill can be exciting. There are many new patio varieties of mini veggies.

Tomatoes have hybrids such as Bumble Bee, Patio Sunshine and Micro Tom (6-8” tall). Tom Thumb peas are great in a pot as they only grow 8-9” and produce a heavy crop. Little Sweetie peas, mini munch cucumbers, snacker cucumbers, tumbler tomatoes and strawberries grow well in a hanging basket.

Today’s urban vegetable garden is smaller — getting the soil rich and fertile is “easy peasey.”

Bagged soil and fertilizer are just perfect for container gardening.

You can even buy ‘grow bags’ full of rich soil that you just slit open and plant seeds.

Do consider container gardening or raised beds or a vertical garden or a square-foot garden or adding some yummy veggies to your flower beds.

Just do it — consider gardening, because 2022 is ‘The year of the Garden’ for Garden Ontario and the Ontario Horticultural Society.

Once a child helps to grow vegetables, they are bound to want to eat them.

So, whether you are a parent, grandparent, or great aunt get them started and a future gardener now.

Nancy Thompson is president of the Bracebridge Horticultural Society. Stay tuned for more gardening tips.