Grow a Garden, Harvest Truly Fresh Vegetables

But The Supermarket Fruit and Vegetable Displays Look Colorful ?

Mostly unseen by today's shopper is all the preparation from the farmer's harvest to the market grocery shelf. The vegetables on display have to look colorful, bright and unblemished to the shopper, or they will remain on the shelf. But all the varieties of tomatoes look as though they had just been picked. Well, the process to get those tomatoes to their destination may have taken weeks and started their journey looking a little different in appearance. Most tomatoes are picked before thy are fully ripe if there is any amount of shipping distance involved. If you live on the east coast and the "beefsteak" variety tomato comes from the west coast, they must be picked and ripened in the shipping process, since they would probably all rot before they arrived at their destination. Some may have even been stored a short period to ripen slightly before shipment.

So, What is Lost In Shipment From Commercial Farmers ?

First of all, let's take the tomato, which is grown in many parts of the U.S.. Since it is picked early for the shipping process, it has not absorbed all of it key nutrients as they would have, had they been let fully ripen and then picked just before eating. What also must be considered here are the nutrients missing from the use of chemical fertilizers, which are totally inadequate in supplying the needed minerals to fruits and vegetables grown in that way. So, not only does the commercially grown tomato fall short of its normal nutrients, but other vegetables also suffer. Then, there are also the insecticides, pesticides, etc.. They must all be washed before use.

So, What Can We As The Consumer Do ?

If you have some area in your back yard, or even if you are an apartment dweller and can get permission from the landlord to plant a small plot, it is the thing to do. The advantages are certainly to your benefit. It certainly will take some of your time and probably your whole family will have to share the chore, if you wish to call it that, but the outcome will be "truly fresh vegetables", which can be harvested throughout the growing season in increments as they each begin to ripen and if you are fortunate enough to get your hand on some manure at a local horse stable and use this to feed your vegetables, all the more benefit, since you will not need as much chemical fertilizer in your garden and you will get more natural nutrients from your harvest. For those of us who live in the southern most parts of the U.S., harvesting by continual planting can be carried on most of the year.

How Do I Get Started ?

Potted vegetables can be purchased from local nurseries during most of the growing season and can even be purchased from "garden centers" of some department stores for a very reasonable price. Your return on your investment will be very high, but there will still be the need for more work to do, like turning the soil, planting, watering, feeding, etc., but your harvest and enjoyment from their nourishment will not compare to the labor.