Time to Get Growing
Organic vegetables were once a hard-to-find item that required a trip to the natural foods store or local farmer’s market. Now that organic produce is mainstream and available in most major grocery stores, is there any need to grow your own? If you already grow vegetables using conventional methods, why go organic? There are many reasons to cultivate your own delicious homegrown organic produce. Here are five of the main benefits of growing your own organic vegetables.
#1 You’ll Enjoy Tasty, Fresh Food Whenever You Want
Ever had a craving for a particular organic fruit or vegetable but found the store didn’t stock it? Alternatively, perhaps you’ve brought home a bag of organic greens that are wilted before you found time to cook it all. Growing your favorites in the back yard ensures that you’ll have convenient access to everything you need. It’s much easier to step outside and grab a handful of fresh spinach or kale for your morning smoothie than it is to drive to the store. You’ll find that your vegetables are much more delicious when they haven’t been driven for thousands of miles or stored for some unknown time in a commercial refrigerator.
#2 Homegrown Food is Bursting with Nutrients
When you grow your garden-ripened food, it has far more nutrients than anything you can buy in the store. Even organic food loses nutrients when it’s stored using conventional methods for long periods. Also, while natural farming methods provide more nutritious food, large-scale industrial agriculture can’t deliver the vitamin and mineral boost of garden-ripened produce. Instead of being pumped full of water to make up weight and rushed to the store before it’s fully ripe, homegrown produce ripens naturally and has time to take up nutrients from the soil.
#3 You’ll Save on Produce
Whether you’re a fan of homegrown food who’s looking to go organic or only a shopper who gets typically organic food, growing your organic produce can save you money. Organic produce at the store may be healthier and tastier than conventional produce, but it tends to cost more. That’s money you don’t have to worry about when you are growing your own.
If you’re already growing food at home, switching to organic methods for Disease Control and Insect Control, like Earth’s Ally, will protect the health profile of your fruits and vegetables while repelling insects and preventing future disease. Choosing OMRI Listed® products protects the investment you’ve already made in your garden. Organic gardening doesn’t rely on artificial fertilizers or toxic chemicals. Because you’re choosing solutions that are safe for People, Pets & Planet, instead you’ll find you have better yields for your outlay and save time and money.
#4 You’ll Shrink Your Carbon Footprint
Remember those refrigerated trucks mentioned earlier? They don’t run on sunshine. Transporting produce from the farm, then to the processing plants, then to the warehouses, then to the stores — all those miles add up to a lot of fuel and a lot of emissions. This is before we even consider the environmental impact of all the refrigeration needed to keep food fresh while it’s transported. When you grow at home, there’s no transportation cost, so you’re improving the environment a little. Local organic planting supports a richer, more diverse range of species than conventional growing methods.
#5 You’ll Experience a Closer Connection to the Earth
Growing your own organic fruits and vegetables provides a stronger sense of closeness to the land and everything living on it alongside you. As you experience the satisfaction of watching your crops grow and ripen, you’ll develop a more meaningful connection to nature: the changing seasons, the different plants and wildlife around you, the way that the conditions you create contribute to your crops. This connection with nature can’t be quantified, but it’s one of the essential benefits of growing organic food.
As well as all these benefits, organic growers can enjoy higher levels of health and fitness. They are spending time outdoors, which is a great way to support your physical well-being. Growing organic brings you peace of mind, knowing that when your kids or pets join you in the garden, they won’t be in danger from chemical treatments. An organic garden is a healthy garden, free from toxic herbicides or pesticides.
We’d love to hear how Earth’s Ally is helping you grow organic fruits and vegetables. Share your experience and stay connected with the #EarthsAlly community on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for access to our latest blog posts, giveaways and exclusive promotions.