Economic climate prime for home gardens
House Keys
By Marcie Geffner, Tuesday, May 19, 2009.
Flickr photo by The Ewan.Oregano and chives.
Those are the only two plants in my backyard. There are also two fruit trees, which produce abundant crops of plums and apricots in midsummer, and there was a lemon bush that I managed to kill a few years ago, possibly because I don't really like lemons all that much except in pies and on fish fillets.
But plenty of other homeowners have planted much more ambitious gardens of herbs, vegetables and berries on their property. Indeed, the opportunity to grow your own food is one of the many joys and privileges of being a homeowner. That's not to suggest that a patio or window box garden can't be sufficient and satisfactory, but rather, that only homeowners can experience the extra thrill of planting small crops of their favorite foods on their own land.
Vegetable and herb gardens are good. They're pleasant places in which to muck about; they're wholesome and healthy; they can be economical; and they remind us that vegetables originally come from the ground, not the grocery store.
Food gardening is on the rise in the United States. An estimated 33 million households had an at-home food garden in 2008, according to the National Gardening Association in South Burlington, Vt. An additional 7 million households are expected to grow their own fruits, vegetables, herbs or berries in 2009, an increase of 19 percent compared with the prior year. The most popular vegetable crops are tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet peppers, beans, carrots, summer squash, onions, hot peppers, lettuce and peas.
Households that have food gardens and fruit trees spent an average of $70 on these activities in 2008. More than half of the households said they grow their own food to improve the taste or quality or save money on food bills. Thirty-four percent of the households said the economic recession was a motivation for their food gardening activities.
One couple of my acquaintance who own a home in a bedroom community east of Los Angeles has planted several kinds of tomatoes, eggplant and yellow squash. The tomatoes are a favorite for use in summer salads. ...CONTINUED
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Submitted by Robert A. Hulme on May 19, 2009 - 2:58pm.
There is nothing better than freshly picked garden vegetables.
Robert A. Hulme
Realtor, GRI, e-PRO
Prudential Utah Real Estate
Loan Officer
Mortgage Xpress
www.LehiUtHomes.com
www.MapletonUtHomes.com
Submitted by Gene Urban -- The Urban Team on May 19, 2009 - 3:48pm.
Hi Marcie,
Great article and very topical. We just had a speaker come to one of our downtown Phoenix meetings who specializes in Urban gardens. I wrote up a piece on Urban Life discussing his thoughts. You can check it out at: http://www.urbanlifeblog.com/2009/04/radiate-phoenix-meets-at-maizies-an....
We still need to get together next time you are in Phoenix.
Take care,
Gene Urban
The Urban Team at Realty Executives
602-234-5777
www.UrbanTeamAZ.com
www.UrbanLifeBlog.com
www.greatinvestmenthomesaz.com
Submitted by Sal Antsipenka on May 19, 2009 - 8:23pm.
The next step is to learn how to make jams, wine from fruits and to jar stewed or pickled vegetables. Fresh fruits are good but won't last you in winter. Learning to be Russians, huh?
Sal Antsipenka
Century 21 Mike Miller Realty
Naples, Florida
http://www.naplesrealestateseller.com
International RealEstate Buyer Leads
http://www.realestatefair.net
Submitted by Betty Saenz REALTOR EcoBroker SRES GRI on May 24, 2009 - 2:15pm.
Thanks for the interesting statistics on this trend! Where did you get them? I knew of the Whitehouse garden but had not seen a list of the "menu". I am fully on this bandwagon and front yard garden organicly here at my Leander, Texas home. I do have a back yard garden as well and my yard is also a National Wildlife Federation Certified Wildlife Habitat. My yard will be on the 2009 Austin Pond Society Pond Tour http://austinpondsociety.org/ for those who want to come see it. We need to not only grow some edibles but also conserve water by minimizing or eliminating expansive lawns. Landscapes use 60% of a home's water.
Betty Saenz REALTOR® EcoBroker GRI SRES®
http://www.bettysellsaustin.com/
http://www.texasorganichome.com/
http://skyrealtyaustin.com/blog/author/betty-saenz
Submitted by Betty Saenz REALTOR EcoBroker SRES GRI on May 25, 2009 - 8:19pm.
Betty Saenz REALTOR® EcoBroker GRI SRES®
http://www.bettysellsaustin.com/
http://www.texasorganichome.com/
http://skyrealtyaustin.com/blog/author/betty-saenz
Submitted by Betty Saenz REALTOR EcoBroker SRES GRI on May 25, 2009 - 8:23pm.
Austin, Texas
I forgot to mention the date and time when my Leander, Texas pond will be on the 2009 Austin Pond Society Tour. 8pm to 11pm on Saturday July 18th, 2009. See my organic edibles in my front yard, biological filter for my pond.
Betty Saenz REALTOR® EcoBroker GRI SRES®
http://www.bettysellsaustin.com/
http://www.texasorganichome.com/
http://skyrealtyaustin.com/blog/author/betty-saenz