This is an inspiring guest post with the effect of getting us all to start small and branch out from there. There is so much we can do–even 10-15 minutes a day spent growing food will save you real cash and nourish your family. Enjoy!
If you want fresh and organic options for your meals, fruits and vegetables from your home garden are a good choice. Not only does growing food save you money, but it also assures you that the foods you’re eating are not treated with pesticides and other chemicals. Start growing food today!
If you’ve got space to spare, here are five foods that you can grow at home:
#1 Organic Sprouts
With varieties like sunflower, pea, broccoli, and alfafa to choose from, organic sprouts can be grown inside or outside of your home, making them easy and convenient to grow year-round!
Plus, don’t underestimate their small size…sprouts contain a HUGE amount of beneficial nutrients, including vitamins and minerals like folate, selenium, fiber, manganese, copper, and protein.
Want to learn more about microgreens? Here’s an article.
#2 Herbs
Herbs like basil, parsley, and thyme can be grown both outside or inside your home in containers. They can be grown all-year round (especially if you practice container gardening), but do know that sunlight and warm temperatures are important to them, so make sure they have access to it.
Herbs are more than just flavorful additions to our favorite foods…they contain many beneficial nutrients including: vitamins A and C, fiber, iron, copper, calcium, and volatile oils with antioxidant properties.
#3 Kale
This highly-nutritious, cruciferous vegetable is a great crop to grow in your garden. Kale contains high amounts of vitamins A, C, and K, plus iron, calcium, and protein. It also has healthy fats like omega-fatty acids, and carotenoids (antioxidants) like lutein and zeaxanthin.
Kale can also help repair your DNA cells and benefit your stomach, liver, and immune system health. This vegetable can withstand colder temperatures because of its crisp leaves, so it can be grown during winter.
#4 Spinach
Why not consider growing your own spinach? This leafy green vegetable is loaded with vitamins and nutrients including fiber, folate, calcium, iron, magnesium, phosphorus, copper, and manganese.
What’s special about spinach is that it contains flavonoids that act as antioxidants to prevent cholesterol oxidation and protect your body from free radicals. Spinach can also tolerate colder temperatures, but it’s best to plant it during the fall.
Read more about using your spinach:
Good gravy: Spinach Meatballs with Bechamel Sauce
Spinach Pesto Salad
Vegetable Powders
#5 Tomatoes
The sight of juicy tomatoes growing in your garden can be quite amazing. This delicious fruit provides many nutrients including B-vitamins, vitamins A, C, E, K, and minerals like fiber, potassium, manganese, folate, magnesium, phosphorus, and copper. However, tomatoes are best known for containing the antioxidant, lycopene, which can protect cells and skin from UV damage and maintain bone density.
You can plant tomatoes during summer when days are sunny and soil temperatures are warm. Just make sure they’re protected well, especially when you live in an area that gets very hot during this season.
Read more about preserving your tomato harvest:
Sun-dried tomatoes
Tomato Paste & Sauce
Tomato Soup from the Peels
Click here to learn more about this great gardening classic.
About the Author
Ma. Josephine Unas is a writer for Mercola.com. Looking for new ways to prepare healthy and delicious food is one of her biggest passions. At the moment, she is reading about the history and uses of true colloidal silver.
I’ve never grown sprouts, probably because I’ve never really been big on eating them, but I grow all of these other things. I’m always amazed by my kale crop and how much it produces. If ever household had a even a tiny plot of kale, I think it would solve the world hunger problem!
…and zucchini!