Do People grow their own food on their property in the big city?
@lookatdesktop (27156)
Dallas, Texas
May 27, 2018 10:44pm CST
I have seen a few instances of backyard gardening in Dallas, TX.
I can't actually say that it is a widespread activity but, if more people learned the simple way to garden, instead of growing flowers and shrubs, perhaps we should all consider ways to grow a few of our own vegetables and fruits to add nutrition to our tables at mealtime and not be so dependent on the big grocery chains that we spend the majority of our paychecks on each week or month just to live.
I try to grow a few peppers and tomatoes. Even so, I realize it requires constant managing and maintenance to do this, even for a city slicker like myself, in the big city of Dallas, Texas.
It's food for thought.
Take a look at this YouTube video and let me know what your opinions are in the comment section below.
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12 people like this
14 responses
@josie_ (10033)
• Philippines
28 May 18
Almost 50% of food produce in the US go to waste mostly because people are not aware or don't really care. I believe people would not be so wasteful if they plant their own crops as part of a self-sustainable lifestyle. Helps the environment also.
3 people like this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
I am thinking along the lines of putting all leftover wasted food in a COMPOST area of my design. It is possible to at least regenerate the soil for future planting by not letting the leftovers end up in a city dumping ground. As to wasting? We don't waste food. If I can, I put out what I can to feed the birds and eat plenty of leftovers. I don't like letting food go to waste. But it does end up more or less around my waist. 
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
29 May 18
@josie_ You are right about that.
1 person likes this
@josie_ (10033)
• Philippines
29 May 18
@lookatdesktop _That is a good idea about making a compost pit. As for your waist problem, gardening is a healthy activity. All that exertion should take off some inches.
1 person likes this
@LeaPea2417 (40064)
• Toccoa, Georgia
28 May 18
I have heard of groups of people in big cities that will find a patch of grass near where they live and start a communal garden.
3 people like this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
This is exactly what I like. I love this idea. I wonder why it is not catching on so much in Dallas? Maybe because people are simply wasteful and lazy. Yea. that seems to be the rule of the day here in Dallas, for most people. Just grow turf grass and spend thousands on it's maintenance. The amount the average American home owner spends on weed & feed and trimming and edging a typical lawn is really about as futile as it can be in spite of the fact some lawns look more like golfing greens.
2 people like this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
29 May 18
@LeaPea2417 So astro-turf comes to mind or a large slab of cement but then that is not actually good for the soil to just bury it under cement. I guess a lawn of wild flowers is just as green as a lawn of Bermuda or St. Augustine. Our back yard has a lot of blue bonnets and when I mow it down to 3 to 4 inches high the green leaves serves well enough as a ground cover.
1 person likes this
@peavey (16936)
• United States
28 May 18
I don't live in a big city but I live in a small one and I garden. I have nearly always had a garden of some kind, first because fresh food is so much better than the store bought stuff that's been in storage for weeks and secondly, because I like to save money.
I never thought of the independent slant until the last few years, but it seems like common sense to produce at least a little of the food you eat. What happens if it does get bad? And it's not just the economy, but strikes and civil unrest, natural disasters and so on, that can disrupt the food supply quickly.
I have heard of cities being strict on home gardens and banning gardening in the front yard, but they're more relaxed where I am and I haven't heard of anyone having a problem with the government.
1 person likes this
@peavey (16936)
• United States
28 May 18
@lookatdesktop That's awesome. They keep fighting for the right to have chickens here, but only those with a quarter acre can. I would love to have just a couple of chickens, but my neighbors would complain before they even layed an egg. Oh, well. They don't mind my garden!
I don't know anyone who even has chickens here in town, much less pet goats!
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
@peavey I am glad you at least get to manage a garden. It is getting late in the season here in Big D, to plant stuff. I might go plant a plum tree. Red plums are something I can eat any time. I wish the weather stayed warm all year so I could grow a coconut and banana tree.
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
I don't think it is as big a deal as perhaps the article suggests it might be, but still, I do know that a neighbor many years before, in the 90s, did not grow a garden but raised chickens in his back yard. The city code enforcement officer did at one point tell him to stop doing it, but before that happened, he managed to raise so many chickens and had so many abundant organic brown eggs he gave them away to his neighbors as he had more than he could eat. I used to hear the rooster in the morning and still there are a few who actually have a pet goat they get milk from in the Dallas area.
1 person likes this
@allen0187 (59818)
• Philippines
28 May 18
I'd grow my own food if I had the chance.
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
If you have limited space and like to plant herbs for your kitchen use, there are some small herbs that can grow in small pots indoors that you can have near a window for easy access to your cooking.
https://bonnieplants.com/library/how-to-grow-herbs-indoors/
2 people like this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
29 May 18
@allen0187 , You are welcome, and I hope you enjoy reading the article.
1 person likes this
@minx267 (15526)
• Hartford, Connecticut
28 May 18
I live in the capital city of Connecticut and I have a backyard garden.. not so much this year.. but in previous years, we have grown, lettuces, raddichio, cabbage, corn, peppers, tomatoes, and other things my roommate eats and I don't lol
1 person likes this
@minx267 (15526)
• Hartford, Connecticut
29 May 18
@lookatdesktop I don't eat many veggies.. I do not eat green beans, will eat salad, spinach, onions, garlic, potatoes, tomatoes, cabbage, corn (on the cob), I eat carrots only when they are shredded, mostly that is about all that I eat.
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
Wow. That is impressive. You do eat veggies don't you? Even my friend who hates greens does in fact eat green beans at times, but some people are simply happy with the big 3: Meat + Potatoes + Beams.
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
29 May 18
@minx267 Every now and then I will eat French cut green beans along with mashed potatoes and Salisbury steak and gravy. It's pretty good together I think, but I don't like green beans unless they are cooked with a little bacon grease. It adds a little flavor along with some salt and pepper added.
1 person likes this
@redhotpogo (4398)
• United States
29 May 18
Urban farming has gotten really popular over the past few years. Vertical farming.
@redhotpogo (4398)
• United States
29 May 18
@lookatdesktop Yeah, it's mostly flowers and herbs right now. But there are some big companies investing in sky scraper farms to help lower the cost of fresh food in the city.
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
29 May 18
I am very glad this Vertical farming is moving forward.
@snowy22315 (209335)
• United States
28 May 18
It is always helpful to grow some of your own food no matter where you live.
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
Indeed true. I wonder if I can grow another lemon tree, perhaps one that is not GMO modified, so it might actually have fruit on it. I can keep one mature lemon tree in the house in the winter and let it sit on the porch in summer. As long as I remember to spray soapy water on it to keep the monarch butterflies from nibbling at the leaves.
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
Well, there are times I wish I had a hydroponic garden but it would be expensive to build and to maintain so I am not able to do that. I think some hanging basket plants are nice, the hanging tomato vine, the grape and ivy plants that can grow down from a hanging basket are both elegant and make use of limited space.
1 person likes this
@ScribbledAdNauseum (104615)
• United States
28 May 18
I don't live in the city, but in the suburbs. I don't grow my own food but have an aunt who does. I think more and more people are growing their own, and I believe that community gardens are becoming more and more popular as well.
We really should do more to support farmer's markets and each other rather than the big box chains. There are even produce subscription boxes that can be subscribed to. I've considered those, but at the present time, I am too broke to afford it.
I can't watch the youtube video. Youtube is messing up for me tonight, I am guessing a family member is downloading something and that is why.
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
I agree. To buy directly from local farmers is the best thing for them and for your pocket book. Buying locally is basically the best thing to do, to avoid the retail market where everything is marked up excessively.
1 person likes this
@wolfgirl569 (136167)
• Marion, Ohio
28 May 18
Many things are container friendly also if you dont want to give up your yard. Items I dont plant a lot of I do like that even with a garden
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
Yes, container planting is the way to go for people in the city. A one gallon pot full of nice potting medium is perfect for jalapenos, tomatoes and strawberries.
@JohnRoberts (109841)
• Los Angeles, California
28 May 18
My father used to have a garden with corn, squash, carrots etc and LA is certainly the big city.
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
I think that is admirable to know. Our parents come from a generation of farmers at least my grand parents do.
1 person likes this
@everwonderwhy (7355)
•
29 May 18
Vegetation, shrubbery and trees also help clean the air. Trees help clean CO2 emissions. Good shade in the streets on very hot days.
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
29 May 18
I love to see trees along the center median of 6 lanes of traffic. It helps do all that and absorb some of the noise also I am pretty sure but not completely. They should grow more shrubs and trees along commercial lots as well as along the major roads. To get extra water for plants on private property, the idea of having large barrels funnels to catch the rain and hold it and have a spout connected to a garden hose for extra water.
1 person likes this
@sw8sincere (6032)
• Philippines
28 May 18
I always love to have a little garden of fruit and veggies but sad to say we no longer have enough space in our backyard for that.
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
Perhaps a hanging basket plant of flowers at least like an ivy or a few potted plants on the steps. It all makes us feel more like we are part of the natural order of things. It is always amazing to see the images of roof top gardens and future art images of cities that have layers and layers of gardens that simply grow above the sky scrapers. Here is a link to an article about it.
With its balconies bursting with trees and shrubs, the "Bosco Verticale" is giving rise to an entirely new take on the traditional idea of the urban jungle.
1 person likes this
@mlgen1037 (29882)
• Manila, Philippines
28 May 18
That is interesting. I do not know anyone here in our city who grows their own food here. But I would like to try that here if I have my own piece of land that has enough space to grow foods. It would be better than buying because organic foods are really expensive, especially for us here.
1 person likes this
@lookatdesktop (27156)
• Dallas, Texas
28 May 18
If you start off with a few plants, even non-food, just healthy broad leaf plants, they can add beauty to your home environment if nothing else, and certainly there are some house plants that can grow indoors or on porches near the house in shaded areas with partial sunlight that with care and some effort can grow some herbs or a few fruits or vegetables you might like. Give it a try and let me know how it goes.
1 person likes this
@mlgen1037 (29882)
• Manila, Philippines
29 May 18
@lookatdesktop Thank you, Anthony. I will. I am thinking of planting some herbs by the time the renovations in my parents' house is over. And my husband has a land and we are thinking of growing some crops there.
1 person likes this
