Thursday, July 5, 2012

Organic Gardening and Growing your own food



We are fortunate to have a huge backyard at our new home. When we moved in we decided to dedicate one side yard for a garden. I've always wanted to grow veggies and herbs. Our plants are planted in raised beds in a compost blend (New Earth) and are watered by a drip line irrigation system that my husband installed. If you are gardening in Texas, raised beds are a must. Our soil is mostly caliche, which basically means you are digging in rock. Watering is definitely a must here as well. We can go for days with 100 degree temperatures.  

Here are some pros and cons to growing your own food:

Cons-  

*Bugs* If you are planning on a Organic garden you must realize that there are lots of little creatures that will find your garden tasty. We have not used any chemicals on our garden at all and just let nature take its course. I'm sure your local garden center has many organic products that are available and would be happy to advise you. After squash bugs almost demolished all our squash, I realized I'm probably going to have to cover my new plants next year. 

*Weather* Luckily, we have not had a huge hail storm this year...knock on wood. I have seen what one of these storms will do to tomato plants and it is not pretty.

Pros-

*Convenience* There is nothing better than being able to walk outside and pick fresh herbs for a dish I'm going to making. 

*It is Economical* Have you seen the price of herbs? I usually pay $3.99 for a fresh herbs and end up throwing half of them away since I just need a few. 

*Bragging Rights* I'm picturing a conversation along the lines of.....

YOUR Friends or Family: WOW, _______________(insert your name here) This is the best salad I've ever had.

YOU: Thanks. I just made it with some fresh herbs and lettuce I picked from my garden. 

YOUR Friends or Family. WOW, _________________(insert your name here) You are such a food snob! 


As you can see the pros way out number the cons. I promise this blog will not turn into a gardening blog, however if you would like to see more of my garden, please visit my gardening blog at Rambling Wren.

18 comments:

  1. I love this post for all the trueness that it is, and also for the humor that is combined. Lovely tomatoes you have there.

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    1. Thank you! I never realized that gardening could be so challenging and rewarding:)

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  2. we grow lots of fruits, veggies + herbs, too - i absolutely love it! i definitely agree on all the pros + cons. someone's been eating our strawberries, so that's the latest challenge we need to overcome. oh, the trials of gardening! =)

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    1. It is pretty fun. Seems like everyday there is something different. I've never grown Strawberries. The best time to grow them in S. TX is in the Spring. Thanks for stopping by.

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  3. Yay, another great blog by Steph to follow! I don't know how I missed it before, but I'm looking forward to following your garden adventures!

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    1. Thanks Mary. I've actually had my gardening blog longer than my food blog. I think the gardeners got tired of seeing my food pictures:) Hope you have a great weekend!

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  4. I LOVE this post, we are growing our own food as well and have been eating organic and preservative free.

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    1. Thanks! I try to eat local and organic fruits and veggies. Food tastes so much better when it is homegrown. Thanks for dropping by.

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  5. I have a little house but huge garden and there is nothing better than growing your own food. I love knowing that there are no chemicals on the veggies that I pick, still warm from the sun. Here's to digging in the dirt!

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    1. Cheers to that! I walk through my garden every morning with my cup of tea. It is so calming and relaxing.

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  6. Hey, girlie...congrats on your own organic garden! I grew up just down the road from my grandparents and their HUGE veggie garden, so I adore fresh-picked veggies! Luckily, our summer hasn't been too awful this year SO FAR!!

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    1. Thanks Wendy. This is my first vegetable garden so it is all trail and error. I'm already looking forward to planting a fall garden:)

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  7. Thanks for this post! I love gardening, and eating organic foods too, that is the main reason why i love to grow vegetables at my garden for again just like you've said, economic and convenient benefits, and most of all sharing it with your neighbors would be best.

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    1. I agree Catherine. Being able to share what you've grown in your garden is pretty cool:)

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  8. Yeah, those darn bugs are pretty tenacious in the organic garden. Of course the healthiest of food makes it worth it, but sometimes we grumble and wonder while we're fighting them off...lol.

    So happy to see your flourishing garden!

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    1. Thanks Maggie. I'm dealing with some powdery mildew on my squash right now. The good news is that the Juliet tomatoes are producing like crazy! Thanks for stopping by:)

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  9. I have yet to get the hang of gardening in Texas. But then I wasn't much of a green thumb in FL either so I guess it just carried over. Every year I make a slight but somewhat valiant effort. I've done ok with herbs but tomatoes just seem to be out of my reach. But I'll try again next year... Glad to see you're having better success!

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