KITCHEN VEGETABLE PLANTS

“To forget how to dig the earth and to tend the soil is to forget ourselves.”
Mahatma Gandhi

A vegetable garden that supplies essential vegetables for the kitchen is an integral part of a home nowadays. Not only that we get pesticide-free organic vegetables and herbs for own consumption, but the gardening itself can be quite relaxing and therapeutic. All activities related to kitchen gardening – preparing the soil, planting the seeds, watering, removing the weeds, manuring, tending the plants, and finally harvesting the fruit of the labour are all pleasurable chores. Kitchen gardening can give hours of gentle, pleasurable exercise for body and soul.

Vegetables picked from the kitchen garden are fresher and tastier than store-bought ones for a variety of reasons. For vegetables procured by the stores, the preference is for shelf-life over flavour, and so are harvested before peak ripeness and sometimes ripened artificially. Veggies cultivated with organic manures always taste better than those grown with chemical fertilisers. It is likely that residues of chemical insecticides used during the cultivation will remain in the food even after thorough washing and can be harmful. By growing own organic vegetables, one is in complete control of what is on and in one’s food plate.

We grow few common vegetables for home use following organic practices: strictly no chemical pesticides, but an integrated strategy for fertilisers. Organic fertilisers are the primary source, and augmented with inorganic fertilisers. We do not grow many varieties of vegetables, but with a bit of effort and care, there is always something to pluck. And the vegetables from the own home garden always tastes better!