by Susan Klatz Beal

Created on: July 15, 2010

When people are faced with financial uncertainty in difficult economic times, one of the best, easiest and most convenient ways to improve the situation, and by extension, save money on groceries is by planting your own garden. The concept is nothing new: this is what people have been doing since the days of Victory Gardens during the World War II era. By growing your own food, and carefully planning what you will grow, when you will plant it, how much you will grow and how you can extend your harvests, you may be able to save as much as $2500 to $3500 or more on your yearly grocery costs.

Here is a look at some of the ways by which growing your own food will save you money on groceries.

*The amount of space you have -

The amount of space you have is a very important consideration when figuring out what you want to grow and how much of anything you will be able to grow. As important as the space itself is, so is the location of that space. To grow food crops, you should have a place where your plants will get at least eight hours of sun a day.

If you don't have a lot of space, there are ways you can create additional space or enhance the space you already have. You can purchase or build raised beds, grow vegetables in containers or use something like a square foot method of gardening which will allow you to grow the most in the smallest amount of space. If your space is really limited, you can create a garden space on a slab of concrete, and you won't have to do any digging to create it. A lasagna garden is basically a garden that is made from a self contained compost heap. You pile layers of food scraps, paper, leaves, grass clippings or whatever you have in alternating layers.

*Deciding what to grow -

Deciding what to grow can be a real source of confusion for people. Think about the things that you and your family love most. Consider things you really love but rarely ever get to purchase simply because they cost too much. These are the things you should put at the top of our list.

Consider things that you can can, freeze or preserve so that you can benefit from these things during the winter months. If you are able to live off of things you can, freeze and preserve during the winter months, that will help you save even more money.

*The best things to grow -

♦Early Spring vegetables -

If you like to eat a lot of leafy greens such as lettuce and spinach, you can plant those early in the spring, and if you plan carefully, you can stagger plantings so that

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