Let's Grow Alexandria!

  I don’t know about you, but making ends meet is getting much harder these days!    After the Polar Vortex, and with the drought in California, the cost of food is going to skyrocket!  Can you afford to keep buying all of your food at the grocery? 

  What happens if the SH#& hits the fan?  What happens if the power goes out and there is no ATM to get cash from to buy food? What happens if there is no food in the grocery store?  What happens if you lose your job?  Do I have your attention yet?

  I hope so!  What would it hurt to grow your own food?  Fresh homegrown produce is so much better for you than produce that is a week old, grown who knows how!  Every bit of food grown is money saved.

    I know a lot of the soil in Alexandria is nasty old clay; hence the nick name of our Garden Club “Claybusters”!  But you can amend your soil.  Add compost, try Lasagna Gardening or raised bed gardens.   

    You can plant blueberries in your landscaping.  Plant a dwarf fruit tree in the yard every year.  Plant grapes along a fence line.   Plant zucchini in your flower beds.  Grow a Meyer lemon tree in your home.  Grow herbs on a windowsill.  Grow sprouts on your kitchen counter.  Whatever you are able to do….just DO it!  Become more self-sufficient.  How accomplished would you feel being able to grow all of your produce for the summer?  How much money would you save? 

   The Dervais Family( http://urbanhomestead.org/urban-homestead) in California  is growing 6000 lbs. per year on the 1/10^th acre garden space in downtown Pasadena.  6000lbs!!! Most lots and homes in Alexandria have way more than 1/10 of an acre yard.  We have the capability of producing at least half of that (due to the length of our growing season).  How cool would that be…growing over a ton of food for our families!  So what would you do with a ton of food?  Eat it fresh and preserve it!  Preserving the harvest is not hard to learn these days with the internet and Ball Canning Books.  I taught myself to can and to dry foods and you can too!  

  I feel we need to get back to the basics and eat a healthier diet!  Preservatives and additives in your food that you cannot pronounce cannot be good for you.  Eating less processed food is healthier and more nutritious.   Read the labels on the food in your pantry.  I dare you!  Even the simplest of items have additives.   I guarantee that foods you grow and preserve are better for you than the additive laden food we buy in the supermarket.

   So I challenge the good citizens of Alexandria to grow your own food this summer!  Start out small and go from there.  You will NOT regret it!  Your and your family’s health will thank you for it.  And, oh yeah, your wallet will thank you as well!

“Let’s  Grow Alexandria”!

AA