Going Natural Is the Way to Go
It’s time to take a stand against harmful processed food being sold today and move towards natural, organic and healthy options. What better way to do that than to grow your own garden?Gardening isn’t actually a foreign concept in the U.S. During World War 2, foods were rationed, and there was also a lack of transportation and manpower, halting food distribution across the country. To solve this dilemma, the government called on Americans to start “victory gardens” in their homes.
Starting your own garden provides you with amazing benefits. The most crucial would probably be having easy access to fresh fruits and vegetables that are not contaminated with dangerous pesticides and herbicides.
Your physical health also gets a boost. It lets you practice Earthing or grounding, wherein you place your bare feet on a surface like dirt, grass, sand or concrete. This links your body to the earth and facilitates the transfer of electrons that relieve inflammation, ensure proper immune system function, and lessenfree radical damage. Research has also shown that you do moderate- to high-intensity movement/s while gardening, making you move more and be less sedentary.
Gardening also improves your mental health. Apart from providing stress relief, a survey conducted by Gardeners’ World Magazine found that 80 percent of the respondents felt happy and satisfied with their lives when they tended to their garden.
Say Hello to Sunlight
Elementary science taught us that plants need sunlight in order for them to thrive. However, there are actually more reasons why sunlight is important for plant development. Not all plants need the same amount of sunlight in order to flourish. Some need more and some need less, depending on two indicators: the climate and the type of plants grown.Plants grown during the summer or in warm weather, such as leafy greens and gourds, need more sunlight because their soil and extensive root systems benefit from these conditions. Since they’re tender, these plants cannot withstand colder temperatures. They “sulk,” or even die, when they’re grown in cold soil.
Meanwhile, semi-hardy or hardy crops planted during the fall or winter require less sunlight because they can adapt to colder temperatures and tolerate light to harder frost. However, those that are planted too late in spring can be exposed to too much heat, causing them to develop bad flavors and texture, have decreased yields, and even forcing plants to flower and form seeds.
Get Your Garden Started
To start you own garden, you need to have a good growing medium first, preferably a fine-textured soilless combination of equivalent portions of peat moss and vermiculite or perlite. You can also add compost that’s loaded with wood chips for better soil health.Another must for people who want to start their own gardens would be to use fresh heirloom seeds. Make sure to place them in containers that are about 2- to 3 ½-inch deep with sufficient drainage holes to sustain the plant.
Get Your Dose of Gardening Ideas from This Infographic
This infographic entitled “The Ideal Amount of Sunlight for Growing Your Garden” can be a useful “cheat sheet” for gardeners, since it shows:Various fruits and vegetables that you can grow in your garden
The type of sunlight that they should be receiving
The number of hours they should be exposed to sunlight in order for them to grow
You can share this infographic to members of your family or community who want to be involved in gardening. Whether young or old, everyone deserves the best and freshest food in order to improve their health.
