Earth to Table: Here’s How to Grow, Harvest & Store Your Own Food

The farm-to-table concept began with restaurants wanting to enhance their patrons dining experience. Rising food prices and a desire for healthier living has seen it take root on the home front too. The benefits of growing your own food are many. In addition to saving money, you’ll find yourself eating more fresh fruit and vegetables. Homegrown produce is also fresher and has more nutrients, so it’s delicious. You can also store and/or preserve the food you grow for winter consumption. Planting a vegetable garden does require some skill and know-how: start small, plant the things you really like to eat, and you’ll soon be on your way to an Earth-to-Table lifestyle.

Finding Space

The first step is deciding how much food to grow. If you only want to augment occasional meals, then a few raised garden planters may be enough. If you’re looking to reduce your grocery bill or store produce through the winter, you’ll need to convert some of your lawn into garden. Don’t use herbicide to kill the grass as it can remain in your growing soil. You’ll need to pull up the sod. Here’s how to do it:

Seed Starting

Starting your vegetable seeds indoors gives you a jump on the growing season because you don’t have to wait until the ground outside thaws. It also lets you control essential early growth factors like water, light and soil. A wide variety of seed starter kits are available to suit different indoor environments. Read our guide on seed starting to learn more.

Seeds vs. Seedlings

Aside from seed starting indoors, you still need to choose between planting from seed vs. planting seedlings from a local garden centre. Seeds cost less, but direct-seeding plants that take a long time to mature is less than ideal. Some plants also just don’t transplant well. Here’s a breakdown to help with your planting.

Succession Planting

Succession planting is a way to maximize space, extend your harvest, and maintain a continuous supply of produce from your garden. One method is to plant a certain area with crops that have short growing seasons. After the initial harvest you can replant the same quick-growing crops for a second, and sometimes even a third harvest. Alternatively, after the first harvest you could plant different mid- to late-season crops that can withstand cooler temperatures. You can also stagger your planting of fast-maturing crops every two to four weeks, so a new crop is always coming in as the previous crops fade.

Same Crop, Different Maturity Rates

One other method of succession planting is to choose multiple types of the same crop, but with different rates of maturity. It’s a great way to ensure a constant supply of your favourite vegetables as different varieties ripen from late spring through to late fall. Check the vegetable seed packets for "days to maturity" to plan this out. Great candidates for this method include:

• Beans (pole)

• Cabbage

• Carrots

• Cauliflower

• Celery

• Corn

• Eggplant

• Kale

• Melons

• Peas

• Squash

• Tomatoes

Harvesting Your Garden

Knowing when and how to harvest your crops is just as important as knowing how to grow them. Here’s a few tips:

Any kind of gardening is good for the soul. There’s something magical about planting a tiny seed and watching its transformation. Growing your own food is even better. It saves you money, makes you more independent, and gives you freshest, tastiest produce you’ll ever eat.