How far do you want your food to travel?

Spring 2013

This is as far as I would like my food to travel.  As far as my own back yard.

Now I know that I won't be able to raise ALL of my food.  I'm not able to. I don't know I am going to try to make our yard as much of a garden, a food garden, as possible. We live on a small piece of land, that is on a definite slope.  So there are many challenges, but I've thought of some things to do to work around those challenges.

For me, my "food" will be what I can grow, basically vegetables and the beginnings of some fruits.

I've shared with you my journey so far with last years garden and how I am preparing for planting blueberry bushes this year so that in a year or two we will be able to harvest our own blueberries.

I don't want to say "I want to be able to grow 50% of my food" as I am not sure how much I can actually grow, but I do know, that I won't know if I don't try.  And so, I am going to try to grow more in my yard this year, than last.

I am also going to be growing things this year, that I am not sure that we are actually going to like and enjoy, but these are things we've never tried before.  Why?  Well, we are like most people, we tend to do what our mothers did.  So it's going to be about going outside of the "box" we've grown up in.  About going out of our comfort zone.  I look at it this way.  We may find some things that we really enjoy that we've been missing.  Maybe we've been missing them because our mothers never fixed them, OR they fixed them by cooking them to DEATH!

I wish I had decided all this 20 years ago so that I would have even more time to think about what we like and how to grow it.  If you are just beginning to garden, whether you are 10 or 50, try some new things as well as things you like.  Eat them raw, straight from the garden.  Try them steamed, blanched, roasted, or even boiled with no other seasonings.  Then, go from there.  Maybe you won't like them raw, or "plain", maybe they are good for stews or soups, or perhaps even breads or cakes.  Go outside of your "box" and comfort zone.

I'd love to hear any comments on what you are doing different in your garden this year.