How your little garden could save you hundreds of dollars in 2020
Q: I am semi-retired, working part-time to earn some extra money because I find that the price of everything just keeps going up, up, up, especially groceries. I try to eat healthy but I find it so expensive. Since the start of the coronavirus epidemic, I've been laid off until it's safe to return to work. Without sacrificing my well-being, how can I save on my food costs?
A: Former U.S. President John F. Kennedy said some 60 years ago: The Chinese use two paintbrush strokes to write the word crisis. One brush stroke stands for danger; the other for opportunity."
We are certainly aware of the danger of COVID-19, nevertheless, the risk is manageable if we all continue to practice our social distancing, wear a mask in public and exercise spectacular hygiene. In a crisis such as this, we must be aware of the danger - but we must also look for the opportunity.
You can't work right now, but you do have some extra time and summer is here, so why not contemplate a garden of fresh vegetables and herbs?
An ebook from the Hamilton Public Library or a Google search will give you all the info you need to plant your seeds, or you can shop online for some starter seedlings. Any local garden centre can provide you with some gardening or potting soil, plant fertilizer, and containers, and will likely have curbside pickup. All you need is a small plot, or even a few containers on your balcony or deck will do the trick. You'll also need some stakes and string to support your vines, like cherry tomatoes, or a trellis for your climbers, like snap peas.
Look for your favourite veggies and herbs. Mine are cherry tomatoes, zucchini, carrots, green onions, and curly parsley, basil, cilantro. (My mouth is watering as I type.)
Your plants will need access to both sunshine and rain, or some watering from you, if they won't get it in your growing location.
Not only is your own garden a nutritious strategy, but there are financial advantages, too. Just imagine how much money you could save if you produced most of your own herbs and vegetables this summer. And you may even wish to freeze some veggies and sun-dry some herbs to take you into the winter months. Your little garden could save you hundreds of dollars in 2020.
Of course, you can serve your homegrown vegetables raw, or have them boiled, steamed, sauteed, baked or barbecued. Increasing your nutritious eating will not only fill your belly, it may even help to increase your immunity. Mother told you to eat your veggies for good reason!
Additionally, a vegetable garden gives you fresh air and some exercise with bending, digging, lifting, carrying, watering, pruning and harvesting. And a little sunlight on your skin will help to metabolize vitamin D, which will also help to strengthen your immune system.
For that matter, your flowering veggies will even help our friendly bee pollinators.
At harvest time, you may wish to share some of your bounty with a neighbour - from a distance. Ring their doorbell, leave your herb and veggie gift, then back away to say hello from a safe physical distance.
You may just be weeks away from the best organic salad that you've ever tasted. And a veggie stir fry or skewers on the BBQ will be just super duper. Knowing that your veggies and herbs were grown by your own hand and saved your pocketbook along the way will make them taste even better.
As JFK suggested, this current crisis has created both danger and opportunity. Protect yourself from the danger but don't miss out on the great opportunity that your herb and vegetable garden can provide, both financial and otherwise.
Thie Convery, R.F.P., CFP, CIM, FMA, FCSI, is a wealth advisor in Dundas. Her column appears bi-weekly in The Hamilton Spectator. You can reach her with questions at TheSpecMoney@gmail.com or by visiting www.ConveryWealth.com.