Ten Reasons To Grow A Garden

An excerpt from Jeanne Nolan's wonderfully inspiring book "From The Ground Up". I have jazzed up the list a bit! Not telling our members anything that they didn't already know eh? Nice reminder though.

1. Health
Eating organic veggies from your garden helps prevent diabetes, obesity, and some cancers.

2. Taste
Homegrown, fresh-picked veggies, herbs and fruit offer an unparalleled taste experience with a great depth of flavour and intensity.

3. Safety
Foodborne illnesses like salmonella and E. coli are routinely found on industrial produced farms. There is no safer source of food than your own community garden.

4. Exercise
Working in the garden is an antidote to our indoor lifestyles… Facebook :)…etc. We live in a technology-driven world with way too many emails!! The joy of physical activity in a natural setting to produce something tangible is not only good for your body but fulfilling to the spirit.

5. Focus
Gardening helps overstimulated humans focus and perform better at work and just in general!

6. Climate
Huge quantities of oil is used annually to feed our population. This accounts for the energy that flows into petrochemical pesticides and fertilizers as well as fuel for farming machinery, irrigation, food processing, and distribution. By comparison, an organic food garden can have a zero-carbon footprint or even a positive climate impact, due to the absorption of carbon dioxide by its leafy plants.

7. Budget
Gardens can considerably reduce grocery bills. A U.S. stat compiled by a recent Gardening Association study found that the average family with a vegetable garden spends just seventy dollars a year on it and grows an estimated six hundred dollars' worth of vegetables! Uh, if you shop at Whole Foods I would say probably triple that :). Just 'sayin.

8. Community
Growing food in our community garden brings us together in the garden, besides the random interactions with one another and our work parties... sharing of veggies, plants and gardening tips… our gorgeous garden continues to be a magnet that gets neighbours and passers-by talking over the fence and in the garden. A great connection.

9. Happiness
Dirt makes you feel good. A 2007 study from the University of Bristol in England showed that when injected in mice, a specific soil bacterium, Mycobacterium vaccae, targets immune cells that release chemicals, which, in turn, stimulate the serotonin-releasing neurons in the brain - the very same neurone activated by Prozac and other antidepressants.

10. Nature
Growing food and flowers offers an accessible way to connect with the natural world. The basic lesson that when we take care of the earth, the earth takes care of us is learned hands on. It's important to use and appreciate modern technology (gotta love the iPad) but it is so so vital to be exposed to the wonders of plant growth and natural ecosystems.