5 reasons why growing your own vegetables is good for you!
The weather has warmed more than a little recently in Auckland. Now, as ever, is the perfect time to start thinking about your veggie patch. Whether you’re an avid veggie gardener, or a bit of a rookie, growing your own vegetables is good for you, your family, and our planet. Even if you only start small to supplement your purchasing elsewhere it can be awesome Here’s why!
A veggie patch gets you moving!
When you start growing your own vegetables, you’ll find yourself being a little more active. It’s great exercise! Research has suggested that a healthier way to stay active, is to try and incorporate exercise into our daily lives, for example, climbing the stairs, walking to the shops, and gardening!
Being outside a little each day also means you get a healthy dose of Vitamin D.
Vitamin D is super important for bone, muscle and immune health and many of us don’t get enough. Spending a little time in your veggie patch each day, watering, harvesting and caring for your plants, not only gets you moving, it also means you get a healthy dose of sunshine! But remember, it’s about moderation. Be careful not to get too much sun exposure.
Gardening can be fun for the whole family, and it’s great to get the kids involved.
It’s a great way to teach your kids about food, and where it comes from. It encourages them to have a healthier relationship with food, teaches them responsibility, and they’re also learning a useful skill for life. Growing your own vegetables can involve the whole family, from choosing what to grow, to looking after the plants. What a wonderful way to spend time with our family!
Growing your own vegetables is less wasteful.
You can pick what you need, as you need it. No produce sitting in the back of the fridge going to waste. And you also save on packaging, which is great for the environment.
And because a veggie patch can be less wasteful, it also saves you money. You no longer need to buy a punnet of rocket or thyme, because you’ve grown them yourself! For example, planting a couple swiss chard plants per family member, will mean you may never need to buy swiss chard from the shops again. And swiss chard is easy-to-grow, and not particularly fussy, and the same plant will produce for more than one season, maybe more!
Yes, growing your own vegetables takes time and a little commitment, but it’s time well spent! And it’s an incredibly rewarding experience.