7 tips to help you grow your own produce (no matter how much space you have)

“It’s disproportionately satisfying to grow your own produce,” says AIA Vitality Ambassador, environmentalist, polar explorer and veggie-patch aficionado, Tim Jarvis. “There’s nothing quite like going out into the garden and picking something you’ve grown yourself.”

And you don’t need to have a massive backyard to get involved – a container on a balcony, pots along the windowsill, even a few carefully placed hanging baskets are all you need to grow fresh herbs and vegetables at home.

And the benefits are bountiful. When you’re eating home-grown veggies, you’re eating seasonally, a habit that Chinese medicine has long touted as a sure-fire way to help us create balance within our bodies, boost energy and provide clarity. This University of Aberdeen study agrees.

There are environmental benefits, too. Instead of eating veggies that might have been grown on cleared land and have more than their fair share of environmentally-harmful food miles attached to them, your crop will be no more than a few metres from your kitchen. You also know exactly what chemicals or fertilisers – if any – have been used to grow your food.

“The Australian Medical Association, American Medical Association and the WHO all say that climate change is the biggest threat to human health in the 21^st century,” Tim explains. “Anything we can do to reduce that, even if it’s something small like growing your own veggies at home, is worth doing. The more we grow ourselves, the less pressure there is to expand the human/agricultural footprint.”

Then there are the physical and mental health benefits…

Gardening is a great exercise in mindfulness, no matter what size space you’re working in. Not only are you out in the sun and breathing fresh air, studies have shown that regular exposure to plants and gardens may be beneficial for our minds and bodies. “Psychologically, growing your own food makes you feel like you’re actively participating in the way the planet functions,” Tim says.

And whether you’re working with an acre block (lucky you!), a balcony, or seemingly no space at all, it’s surprisingly simple to go green. Here’s how to get started:

Ideally, you want to start your garden in a spot that gets lots of sun. “Factor in the orientation of where you’d like to grow things,” Tim says, adding that, ideally, your garden needs around 6-8 hours of sunlight each day. If you’re starting your garden indoors (in pots and baskets), choose somewhere that gets lots of natural light. If your patch doesn’t get much light, Tim suggests researching shade-tolerant plants.

Whether you’re working in the ground or in pots, you want to make sure your soil is in top-notch condition. If your soil is looking a bit clay-like, Tim suggests digging through some gypsum, available from your hardware store or nursery. It’s also good to pick up a few bags of organic potting mix and work it through your existing soil, or pop directly into your pots.

If you’ve got limited space, work with pots and containers. Fill a few containers with soil and place in a sunny spot in your courtyard or on your balcony. No garden at all? Try hanging baskets in the sun, or deep, narrow boxes on your windowsill. Lettuce, spinach, radish, carrots and most herbs will grow wonderfully in a window box, while strawberries, cherry tomatoes and peas do well in hanging baskets.

If you haven’t spent much time growing things, start with plants that are easy to grow. Herbs like parsley, mint and rosemary are great if you don’t have much space (and they flourish in pots), while salad leaves, beans, tomatoes and kale are excellent if you’ve got a bit more room.

“We’ve gone for the philosophy of growing two or three things in volume,” Tim says of his veggie patch, where he’s currently growing tomatoes and lettuce. “If you try and grow 17 different things, you usually only produce about one carrot a year, which isn’t very satisfying.”

Whether you plant seeds or seedlings depends on what you want to grow. Some veggies, like carrots, beetroot and beans, are easy to grow when you direct-seed, whereas crops like salad leaves and tomatoes do well planted from seedling. Chat to your local plant seller for advice on what will work best for your garden.

When you’ve got your new plants in the ground, they’ll need plenty of TLC. And by TLC, we mean water. Give them a good soak every day for the first three weeks after you’ve planted seedlings, and a quick water twice daily for seeds (drop back to once a day when they sprout).

When your garden is flourishing and tomatoes are red, zucchinis a good size, and herbs looking leafy, make sure you pick them, cook them, and eat them! If you leave things on the plant too long, you risk woody veggies or pests getting in there first.

Here’s one of our favourite recipes featuring easy-to-grow backyard produce, like tomatoes, capsicum and spinach.

Staff writers come from a range of backgrounds including health, wellbeing, music, tech, culture and the arts. They spend their time researching the latest data and trends in the health market to deliver up-to-date information, helping everyday Australians live healthier lives. This is general information only and is not intended as medical, health, nutritional or other advice. You should obtain professional advice from a medical or health practitioner in relation to your own personal circumstances.