by Kessie Carroll

Created on: May 22, 2009

Fresh vegetables are universally praised by doctors and dietitians. Eating organic produce is even better. The drawback is that organic produce is more expensive than chemically-treated produce. What can we do about that?

The answer: grow your own.

Planting a garden and growing your own food is rewarding and relaxing at the same time. You have control over whether or not your precious plants ever get a whiff of pesticides. And your garden is always readily accessible when you are preparing meals.

If you have room in your yard for a garden, a few square feet per plant is usually enough. Spade up the earth or rototill it and mix it with the fertilizer of your choice (manure is a good standby). If you don't have a yard, then several big plant pots will do nicely. Invest in good planting soil and some fertilizer.

Your garden area is all prepared ... what should you plant?

Take a look at the foods you eat. What sorts of fruits and vegetables do you cook on a daily basis?

Onions, garlic and tomatoes feature heavily in many recipes, whether flavoring meat, topping on a salad or seasoning soup. All three plants are available at plant nurseries, and they are easy to grow.

If you cook with potatoes a lot, you might want to try growing some of them, too. They grow just fine in pots, and all you need to start them is to cut the eyes out of a potato and plant them.

Do you enjoy eating corn on the cob in the summertime? Why not try growing some corn? Corn grows best in large patches, so it may not be the best choice for a pot.

Melons can be grown in pots, but they grow on a vine, and the vines like to spread out. You can train them to climb a trellis to save space, however. As your melons develop and grow heavy, you may need to support them to keep the vine from breaking.

Spaghetti squash is a nice vegetarian alternative to pasta. Squash grows in a shrub-like bush that tends to produce fifty times its own weight in vegetables. This goes for squash, cucumbers, and zucchini. If you only want a few of these vegetables, only grow one plant of each.

Beans and peas grow on vines, but they are natural climbers and will scale a trellis, or a chair, or a fence, or whatever is handy. They are fun to grow, and fresh green beans and peas have fabulous flavor.

How about peppers? Bell peppers are easy to grow and love sunlight, and develop a much sweeter flavor than most found in grocery stores. If you enjoy hot peppers, try growing your own jalapenos and chilies.

And then there's spices. Many spices that we take for granted are leaves from plants, such as rosemary, basil, parsley, mint, chives, and sage. Check your pantry to see what spices you use often, and invest in a plant of each. Fresh spices usually have much stronger flavor than dried ones, and you can dry your own spices yourself when the plants are large enough.

Last but not least, no garden is complete without a small aloe vera cactus. Aloe vera has serrated leaves and no spines, and the juice from its leaves, when applied to a burn, keep the burn from blistering and help it heal quickly. This is useful when you are cooking a lot, and accidentally touch a hot pan or stove rack.

Consider preserving some of your produce, too. Canning may seem time-consuming, but it will save you lots of money in the long run, especially in the winter, when you can eat your own canned food instead of buying it. Many vegetables also freeze wonderfully, too.

The list of foods to grow are limited only by your personal tastes.

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