Start Small, Grow What You Like and Be Realistic: How to Start a Vegetable Garden
Maybe it’s because I’ve lived in cities my whole life, but I can’t think of anything more luxurious than popping out to your garden and eating a fresh tomato straight from the vine. How decadent to enjoy its crisp, bright flavor and the smug satisfaction that you coaxed this food into being with your own hands.
But what does becoming a modern-day Demeter actually entail? What if you don’t have a yard, or even a balcony? And is it worth growing your own food when supermarkets exist?
“A vegetable garden can be any size,” says Matt Mattus, senior director of horticulture at the American Horticultural Society. You don’t even need access to outside space, he says.
Yes, it’s more effort than popping to the store, but there are huge benefits to growing your own veg, experts say. First, the taste and freshness. “There are no words that can describe the crunch and flavor of a fresh-from-the-garden carrot or potato,” says Mattus.