Here’s a great little video from the people at the White House garden about how to extend the growing season for fresh, organic, winter vegetables in your own backyard.
You can put up hoop houses, which are like small temporary greenhouses. They look simple enough: metal hoops, a plastic cover, and some heavy rocks or other objects to hold down the sides. These hoop houses actually allow you to grow vegetables in almost any climate throughout the year.
The USDA is supplying small farmers with the tools to build hoop houses on a larger scale in 38 states, as part of their Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food initiative. (Finally, I’m saying something good about the USDA!) Check out the video here.
As for me, I’m getting closer and closer to growing my own food in my backyard. I just need help getting past all the critters that will be back there chomping (and other things) on my veggies. Rats, squirrels, possums, cats. Ugh! Yes, I know the commercial farmers who grow the food I eat deal with the same issues, but they’re professionals! Anyway, I’m working on it. My mother, grandmother, and aunts have grown their own food in the city, so I know my turn is coming. Actually, there’s an awesome new community garden a few blocks away from me that gives planting lessons, so maybe I’ll start there. (Now I’m getting excited!)
Are you growing your own food? If so, let me know how it’s going. And please be sure to post your reply on this blog page under comments, so others can read it, too. Thanks!
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we planted a garden this past summer. we did not have much problem with the critters until very late in summer/early fall. we put up a small fence using just wood we found in the yard and some screen material. any scraps we did not eat we put out for the animals in the opposite corner of the yard. we put out some hot pepper seeds when they got insistant. We also planted sunflowers for the critters only, and had fun watching them enjoy. as our garden becomes better, we thought we might plant some things for the animals outside the fence – maybe in the other corner of the yard. it is their land, as well, right?
true! thanks for sharing, tammy.