Marye Audet:Sustainable Gardening Hubs

An important part of sustainability, or self sufficiency is the ability to provide food for yourself, and your family. Growing organic vegetables is more than a wonderful hobby. It is a way that you can provide nutritious foods at a fraction of the cost of the commercially-grown, tasteless, vegetable wanna-bes in the store. Not only that, but with some planning and some instruction you can preserve the food that you grow so it will last until the next growing season.

Here are hubs on a variety of gardening topics, to help you in your quest for self sufficiency.

Building a greenhouse is not as difficult as you may think. If you have been considering building one, take a look at Build Your Own Greenhouse, A Step by Step Guide

The Fall Vegetable Garden talks about how to lengthen your growing season, and the types of plants that do well in the fall. Planting tips and varieties that are cold hardy make this hub helpful to the gardener ready to extend his growing season.

Have you thought of growing herbs on your windowsill? You can grow many herbs year 'round by utilizing sunny windowsills and a few pots. Having a fresh lavender spring for herbes de provence, or basil leaves to flavor fresh mozzarella in the middle of winter is just downright luxurious.

Wondering what is special about Heirloom Fruits and Vegetables? Read this hub and you will understand why so many people are seeking out heirlooms for their sustainable gardens.

If you think you can't homestead because you don't have enough space you need to read How to Farm in the City:Urban Homesteading. It is amazing what you can do with very little space. This Hub includes a video of a famil;y in Pasadena that is almost completely self sufficient on a suburban lot.

Everyone's favorite vegetable is a tomato. Read How to Grow Heirloom Tomatoes from Seed to find out about some of the different types, and the best ways to start them.

One of the most important aspects of good organic gardening is compost. In the hub, How to Make Compost, we look at the components, and the hows and whys of good composting.

Another aspect of a thriving garden is the preparation. It is important that you get a good start with deep tilling and cultivation of the soil. In How to Till, or Cultivate, Your Garden basics for this important job are discussed.

If you need to Keep Deer Out of Your Garden, here are some good ideas.

Everyone knows that snakes are beneficial and you shouldn't kill them. They keep rodent populations down, and very few are dangerous. However, some, like the Rat Snake and the Copperhead look an awful lot alike. Read Rat Snake or Copperhead? and never wonder again.

Sustainable Garden Design has many suggestions from solar lighting to using your rainwater run-off as a free water source.

Worms are another important aspect of organic gardening because they are so beneficial to the soil. Vermicomposting has great information on turning your compost into a worm farm.

You can couple the vermicomposting with Lasagna Gardening for incredible results.

If you would lke to grow your own fruit but don't have much space, consider Dwarf Fruit Trees.

Another fruit that is almost a requirement on the homestead is Strawberries. Knowing How to Grow Strawberries is a delicious way to add nutrition to the table.

A Portable Garden Cloche can help lengthen your growing season.

Henry Ford stated that there was no unemployment insurance that could be compared with the alliance between a man and his garden. A vegetable garden for food, an herb garden for medicine, and a flower garden to delight the eyes make for the perfect homestead.