More people are embracing healthy lifestyles and eating more organically grown vegetables and foods, including planting their own kitchen gardens.
Growing organic vegetables can offer tremendous benefits including a clean and sustainable environment, a healthy and safe food supply and an enjoyable, rewarding experience and exercise. Organic vegetables are free from chemicals and fertilizers and having a garden encourages birds, bees and butterflies.
Many years ago, I met a cancer survivor who had started to grow her own vegetables. I suggested that she use well-rotted pen manure and compost, sun-dried and chipped to make her beds and plant boxes. She left seeds to dry from the same vegetables she planted to set her seedlings. When all of this was done and the seedlings were approximately 2 inches tall, they were transplanted to the beds. Alongside the beds some companion plants were planted to keep the insects and pests away.
The idea caught on when friends visited and she shared her produce. Encouraged by this and with the help of 2 labourers she expanded her kitchen garden. She planted poi, lettuce, eggplant, cabbage, bora, squash, pumpkin, watermelon, okra and bitter melon. After retaining enough for herself and family, she sold the rest off to her friends and was able to sustain herself with an income. There was never enough to sell. The demand was greater as people got to know, however, she chose her clientele. She survived for 25 years and always claimed that she lived long because she grew her own vegetables and changed her eating habits.
We can all start our own kitchen gardens. There are new and exciting vegetables that we can try growing such as kale, onions, beet, broccoli and cauliflower. People on the West Berbice are growing all of these successfully, along with peanuts.
Until next week, Happy Gardening.
