The Benefits of Growing your Own Garden

Have you ever stopped before a meal and taken the time to appreciate the work that's gone into the food on your plate? Have you ever put yourself in the shoes of a farmer to know what it's like to produce your own food?

Often it takes a huge amount of back-breaking work just to get those blueberries into your morning smoothie, something we take for granted.

Growing your own garden and harvesting your own food (however small that amount might be) can raise ones appreciation for the finer things in life, such as good quality food! Here are some other benefits to growing your own garden:

1. Time in the garden is quality time spent in nature. And any quality time in nature is restorative, reviving and revitalizing to ones mental, physical, emotional and spiritual wellbeing. Being active outdoors literally lifts ones spirits, clearing any anxiety, stress or build-up of frustrations over a period of time. Gardening also grounds ones energy. Radioactive waves from WiFi, computers, and cell phones can be extremely damaging to ones health. Gardening, and connecting to earth energy by either having your feet or fingers in the soil, clears any form of radioactive build-up.

2. As mentioned, gardening will provide you with a greater appreciation for the food on your plate and how that food got from field to fork. This makes one a more conscious and enlightened consumer. Truly understanding what you're putting into your mouth and body results in greater awareness around which foods affect your health. You might think twice about consuming Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO's); chemically-laden, pesticide-laced food crops or meat injected with hormones and anti-biotics. Gardening connects you with the natural cycles and principals of how and why to eat certain foods.

3. In gardening you can reap the healthy rewards of harvesting and eating your own homegrown, organic (if produced without chemicals & fertilizers) fruits and veggies. There's no food more nutrient and mineral rich than wild, organic or homegrown produce. This is because you're eating food whose mineral content is far less deficient than the commercial mono-crop produce found in big-chain supermarkets.

4. By gardening and producing your own fruit and vegetables, you reduce your reliance on the supermarket. What a fantastic thought to think that you're no longer dependent on the fluctuations of food and oil prices on the stock market. This will not only save you money in the long term, but you're also doing your bit for the environment. We all know that industrial agriculture, with its reliance on chemicals, fertilizers and heavy carbon producing fossil fuels is one of the biggest contributors to soil desertification and climate change. Cutting out trips to the supermarket increases resilience and greatly reduces reliance on a no longer sustainable industrial agriculture system.

5. And finally, gardening is a great way to increase vibrant, connected, and cooperative local communities. As more and more systems (political, financial, climatic) start to break-down, nurturing and supporting local communities by way of shared gardening practices means you're less susceptible to global economic melt-down. And if you and your mates are growing different types of fruits and veggies then you can come together to share in the abundance of your labor. There's nothing better than a Sunday lunch with friends or family prepared with stuff grown from your garden. Plus, it just tastes better!

If you're looking for a better connection with nature that gives you more awareness of the food you eat, start a garden. And persuade your friends and family to start one too. Begin to realize some of the benefits mentioned in this article for yourself. Reconnect with the rhythms of nature by getting your hands and feet in the soil. Happy gardening!!