Introduction

When we first started growing tomatoes it wasn’t because it was part of any local trend or because it was the “green” thing to do. We did it because home grown tomatoes just plain taste better. If they are fresh picked they do not have time to begin the deterioration process. They are not picked green to ripen during the transportation process with often mushy results. I confess to being a tomato snob and that I almost never eat restaurant tomatoes or buy them from a store when they are not in season because I am always disappointed. I have just learned to eat tomatoes when it is tomato season and others things when it is not. Another benefit of growing our own vegetables is that we were able to eat tomatoes when there was the tomato contamination and we were able to eat spinach when we had the spinach e-coli contamination.

We have learned through trial and error what grows when, what varietals work best for our weather conditions. When we first started growing vegetable in the eighties we used pesticides to control pests and disease but now we have learned that you don’t need to put harmful chemicals on your plants to keep them healthy and productive. You can use companion plants, and natural extracts and soaps to control most pest problems. We absolutely eat seasonally and growing food in your backyard is as local as you can get. I will also tell you that because we have our backyard garden we eat healthier as our meals are planned around what is available from the garden and we eat very fresh vegetable that are picked as we need them. We have also learned to be creative in the kitchen as we try new ways to cook our produce. It has definitely been a learning process but its been fun learning about new vegetables and finding creative ways to prepare them. We had Swiss Chard planted in our garden for over a year before I figured out how to cook it properly. My husband had planted it and I had never seen it before or even heard of it. I assumed that it was like a lettuce and while you can eat it raw like a lettuce it is even more delicious steamed or sautéed like a green. Our family, neighbors, and friends also benefit from the garden as they are often the recipients of any excess we happen to have.

This blog is more of a guide rather than a how to. There are many ways to garden and it is something you have to evolve and experiment with. We volunteer with the Austin Green Corn Project which is a grassroots, volunteer-run organization dedicated to helping Central Texans in need grow their own organic vegetables. Green Corn Project installs organic food gardens for elderly, low-income, and disabled community members as well as for elementary schools, community centers, and shelters in underserved areas of Austin. One of the volunteer leaders has a joke he uses with every new group of volunteers. “If there is one thing two gardeners can agree upon it is that the third gardener is doing it wrong.” There are many gardening techniques and theories - our best advice is to start small and try new things as you learn what works and what doesn’t for your environment and lifestyle.