Homegrown vs store-bought

Homegrown. It brings to mind tall stalks, heavy with ripening ears of corn or rich, red tomatoes shouting their readiness for a dinner salad. There was a time when I imagined organic gardeners as a fringe, hippie bunch of folks left over from the 60s. Quite uninformed to say the least. However, I learned that they were, and are, the true gardeners. These folks knew all about the benefits of home-grown vs. store-bought and organic gardening long before they became buzz-words.

GMO is a NO for me

During the years which genetically-modified everything came into being and the furor that ensued, I did some research and didn’t like the results. I began to reason if I wouldn’t buy GM food, why was I still planting seed-starts from the garden center that were ‘hybrids’ or ‘bred for success’? The argument that GMOs would make a plant resistant to disease or specific pests did not convince me in any way.

Down the organic path

This sparked my journey down the organic path. I have subscriptions to Mother Earth News (excellent source of ideas and how-to) and the Old Farmer’s Almanac (invaluable) and started planting my own seeds, from reliable, organic sources. In the last weeks of winter I pot them up indoors, complete with a 4 ft. grow light to get a jump-start on the growing season here in the Northeast. I’ve begun saving seeds from plants that have done well and that I want to continue growing. Next season, I hope to plant several varieties of heirloom tomatoes. Home-grown wins, hands down against any store, market or ‘food boutique’ produce.

I use organic fertilizer, compost and dehydrated manure and it has paid dividends; yields are better and the plants are more vigorous. I know what I’m growing and what is not in the food – at least some of it- that my family is eating. The difference in taste of home-grown versus anything store-bought is tremendous; it’s the crisp sweetness of freshly harvested carrots or pears harvested moments before eating that is not available in a supermarket.