Consider The Health Benefits of Your Own Vegetable Garden

Being from Maine, I consider myself a country person, not a city person. Living in a small town means that there is a lot of space to grow my own vegetables. This may not be true for residents of the city. But if you do have space to grow your own vegetables, there are both health benefits as well as savings to be had in your food budget.

There is no denying that eating fresh vegetables provides a multitude of great health benefits. A small (or not so small!) vegetable garden would provide the freshest vegetables available. Survey your yard and see if you have the space for a small garden. If you do, it is fairly easy to start your first vegetable and soon you will have fresh, delicious vegetables to feed your family.

Feeling a sense of pride, accomplishment, and knowing that your vegetables have not been exposed to chemicals as you watch the fruits of your labor begin to flourish are just a few of them.

Organic gardening will definitely be healthier. And it does not have to cost any more. Avoiding the use of chemical fertilizers and commercially produced pesticides is also a way to achieve better tasting vegetables. Without these unsavory additions, you'll notice the untainted, actual taste of the vegetable and enjoy food the way nature intended. Organic gardening isn't as difficult as you may think. In fact, it's relatively simple to grow a healthy, bountiful crop.

Where animal manures are available, as they are here in Maine, they are probably the best source of fertilizer and organic matter for the organic gardener. Use manure which has been aged for at least 30 days if possible, or composted.

There is a debate between genetically modified seeds and "heirloom" seeds which have not been genetically modified. The main difference is that with genetically altered seeds, you cannot save your seeds from this years vegetables to use next year. They will not produce vegetables. With heirloom seeds, you can remove the seeds from your crop this year and they will produce another crop next year. Johnny's Seeds in Maine is a good source for heirloom seeds.

Among the many things an organic vegetable garden may offer towards a healthy lifestyle are fresh air, exercise, sunshine, knowledge, cost savings, stress relief, and fresh food, rich in vitamins and minerals, harvested at the just the right time for the perfect combination of taste and nutrition.