Spring has Sprung

Spring is in the air! I love this time of year. Down here in Tassie the days are getting longer and it’s a little easier getting up in the morning, not so frosty. The garden is starting to come to life. Overnight my plum tree has burst into bloom. Now is the perfect time to get into the garden and plant your herbs and vegetables. Check out this great website that outlines what we should be planting at different times of the year. You can also subscribe to get monthly reminders for planting: http://www.gardenate.com/

I’ve made my list for our trip to the nursery and on the week end the children and I will have fun planting out our vegetables and herbs. The kids love to help plan and plant out the veggie patch. I found my children are more likely to try different vegetables if they had invested time in growing them. They feel more connected to it. I love having a ready supply of herbs; our food always tastes better! Growing food locally is also very important for the environment. Micro-farming will become essential as our world population continues to grow. By 2050 it is predicted the world’s population will be 10 billion and 28 billion by the end of the century. The size of the carbon footprint of our food is important and locally grown food is obviously better. The Worldwatch Institute reported that 80% of New York residents could be fed from rooftop gardens. Check out this link: http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/healthreport/the-politics-of-food/7662436 where Dr Norman Swan talks with Indira Naidoo, Damon Gameau and Julian Baggini about the politics of food and how we can achieve an open and fair food system that encourages consumers to make informed choices.

I hope you feel inspired to get your gardening gloves on with your children and get dirty in the garden this weekend. But don’t stop there! Encourage your schools to plant kitchen gardens and visit your local community garden. Lets be part of the food revolution that is gaining momentum nationally and internationally.