There has never been a better time to grow your own. Making use of home gardens has always been a rewarding and sensible thing to do. With genetic modification, predicted supermarket shortages and environmental damage, we should all be trying to become a little more self-sufficient and sustainable. Produce grown, picked and enjoyed from your own plot has never been a better idea!
Why you should Grow Your Own
It’s More Nutritious
When growing your own food, your diet is more diverse and healthier, packed with vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Growing your own food yields better-tasting food with a higher nutritional value. It also exposes your diet to healthier foods – especially if you choose to grow a variety of fruits and vegetables. ‘Eat a rainbow’, is a common mantra from nutritionists and dietitians keen to get us to vary our diet.
It helps you Stay Active
Gardening is an easy and fun way to get outside for some fresh air and physical activity. It’s also a social event that every member of the family can get involved in from the kids to grandparents.
It Improves your Health and Wellbeing
More and more research is highlighting that gardening has positive effects on our health and wellbeing. It is only a matter of time before we can ‘blueprint’ a garden for optimal health and wellbeing. Therefore, not only will we be cultivating beautiful plants that delight our senses. We can also grow food and even cure minor ailments in our gardens.
It Saves Money
By growing your own, you cut out the supermarkets and their mass-produced, tasteless fruit and veg. You will get direct profits from your own crops. Take our exclusive Sungold tomato, for example, you can potentially grow upwards of 7kilo (15.5lbs) of tomatoes. This will save in excess of £250 when compared to other high-end sweet cherry tomatoes.
And of course, there’s the added benefit that you don’t need to stand in a supermarket queue.
It’s Better for the Environment
By recycling your household waste for compost, you will be doing your bit to reduce landfill. By growing your own produce, you will be taking fewer trips to the supermarket. Therefore you will be using less fuel and reducing your CO2 emissions. You won’t be using pesticides and chemical fertilisers on your own produce, therefore reducing environmental damage.
Make your garden ‘Staycation Ready’
With the news that travel companies are well and truly in trouble. We are opting to travel less this year and are instead opting to stay at home. Staycations are the perfect solution to the current global holiday market as travellers feel more comfortable being in familiar surroundings. Despite what you might think, you don’t need to spend lots of money to get the garden of your dreams.
There’s no better time to get your plans into action!
Tidy & Tame
It may seem like an obvious thing to do, but if you remove rubbish and weeds and cut back overgrown plants, you’ll be able to get a better idea of what needs doing, plus your garden will look loads better and of course it’s free! Any plants that are overgrown can be carefully relocated and new ones put in their place so rejuvenating areas that have become tired or boring. Spades, forks and cutters are the tools that you’ll need, and they’re easily purchased for a reasonable price.
Mulch & Disguise
A mulch of stones or decorative bark works wonders to disguise bare patched of soil and bring together disjointed areas to give an overall flow to your garden.
Raised Beds
If you want to Grow Your Own and are not afraid of a little work, a quick and easy way is to add a raised garden. You can do this with blocks, bricks, or sleepers. There is also some premade options available to save you time and effort.
Raised gardens are the perfect solution for growing vegetables. They’re easier to maintain and you can add the soil of your choice to promote the perfect crop of veggies.
Landscaping
Paths, fences, features or whatever you fancy to give your garden style and structure. Landscaping helps draw the eye, create space and a journey through the garden. Paths can be straight or winding, lawns can be square, round or undulating, get creative! Solid structures can also help keep plants where they belong so have a tidying effect too.
Borders
A great garden needs a great border where you can add all manner of plants to compliment your landscaping. It’s easy to create an instant impact with your borders. You just need to choose plants that are ready to go! Tip them out of their pots and plant them wherever you want them to grow.
Whatever you decide to do this year, YouGarden is here to help. With our tips and advice, you can create a garden that others will envy and your family can enjoy. As an online supplier, we’re here 24/7. No queues. No unnecessary journeys. You don’t even leave the comfort of your own home, we will deliver direct to your door.
