Best tips for growing food for humans to eat?

Question

Best tips for growing food for humans to eat?

Answer 1

When it comes to growing plants for humans, you need to familiarize yourself with their requirements. Some plants require a very specific depth and time to plant them in the ground. There might be suggested watering schedules. Learn what soils are preferred for the selection you picked for your garden.

Also, make sure you take care of the soil before you try to plant it - most of the top soil in my state (Illinois) is clay-like, hard, dry, and washed out. When my father planted his garden we dug the whole area up, about a foot in, and scattered organic wood chips and other nutrients to nourish the beaten-up soil. He broke the soil up and blended it with organic, nutrient-packed store-bought soil. Then he leveled the garden again and began to plant.

I wouldn't use pesticides or insect sprays. My parents refused to, and they learned that strawberries and raspberries are eaten by squirrels and birds before they ever make it to the kitchen table. Tomatoes, pickles and squashes are growing splendidly though and nobody's bothering them. I think the whole point of growing food for yourself is the quality control aspect - nutritious soil yields a nutritious crop. Organic store-bought food, while more expensive, contains more nutrients, including salicyc acid in much higher amounts - that's the active ingredient in aspirin, which is known for it's cardiovascular health benefits. So instead of using pills and potions, let your food be as nutritious as nature intended it. Using toxic substances to control nature isn't worth the eventual health costs. You might as well buy the cheap chemical stuff straight from the store then.

Personally I don't have a garden, my lawn is approximately the size of a bathmat because I live in a rental unit, so I can only call "mine" the patch of soil directly in front of and around my patio. I want to have a garden though and I participate in my parent's garden constantly.

Answer 2

Go to the research section here: http://newfreebooks.com You will find "Grow anything" on that list. It's a great website.