Agriculture is one of the most important developments in human history. About 10,000 years ago humans figured out how to obtain food from cultivated plants and herded livestock enabling us to put our roots down (so to speak). This incredible advancement in human history allowed humankind to make the leap from hunter-gatherers to civilized society. Someday the advent of the Internet may be looked at in history as the key advancement that made globalization possible, much like agriculture made local societies and culture possible. So I figure why not grow our own and blog about it so we can be part of history and the future too.
Since moving to the Pacific Northwest region in 2006, we have significantly changed the way we eat and buy food. With an abundance of farmers markets, produce stands, and great weather, we are eating more and more fresh fruit and vegetables. Additional local items like honey, breads, pickles, seafood, wine, beer, and many others are readily available as well. What’s even better than buying locally is growing locally, in your own yard! Consider that commercial produce and other products are full of pesticides, preservatives, artificial flavorings, among other mystery ingredients. The choice is clear, for healthy food and peace of mind- grow your own.
Having your own garden can be rewarding in many other ways than just having super fresh food on the table. It brings out your nurturing abilities, much like taking care of a pet or child. In return you are rewarded with delectable gifts that taste oh so much better than anything bought at the store. Speaking of that, most store-bought produce is picked early so they ripen on the way to the store, and then sit on the shelf for a while before going rotten. In your own garden you can pick your food ripe on the vine so it is fully developed and ready for consumption on the spot. There is a rewarding sense of accomplishment that comes with gardening. It is a natural way of getting back to basics and tuning into the way things used to be, instead of being like so many people today who just tune into the TV while eating a TV dinner.
Another green benefit to having a green thumb is there is practically zero emissions associated with the food you grow, and very little with locally bought produce or CSA’s. Think of all the transportation that is involved with commercial bought produce that travels an average of 1500 miles to your table. Last summer I almost bought a bag of oranges. They looked so good and I was really craving some citrus, but being from South Florida I knew something just wasn’t right with fresh oranges in July. I checked the label and sure enough they were from South Africa, which explains the high price and why they were ripe in the summer instead of the usual winter season. Nothing against South Africa, but I thought to myself do I really want to support buying produce that is shipped half way around the world when I can just buy something else that is local and in season for much cheaper? I put the oranges back and decided that I would buy locally grown or at least domestically grown whenever possible.
In addition to gardening and buying at farmers markets we are subscribing to a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture). The CSA share is a big movement in Oregon that we just learned about last year. This season we have paid upfront for a summer full of fresh CSA fruits and veggies from SunGoldFarm. Starting in June we will pick up a basket of fresh fruit and veggies every week. The baskets are surprisingly cheap for the large quantities you get. Each week the basket contents will be a little different since various fruits and veggies ripen at different times. With the CSA it’s up to us to be creative and find a way to use the items we get, or give away the ones we don’t use. I’m looking forward to some culinary creativity in the kitchen. Who knows we may just go vegan for the summer!
A small harvest from our garden.
