There are so many benefits to growing your own produce. Just where do we start? Not only is it great for your family's health, but you will see children, who previously wrinkled their noses at vegetables, wanting to try some because they have helped you grow it in your own garden.
Fruits and vegetables shipped into the UAE from miles away lose their nutritive value; and may have been grown with harmful fertilisers and pesticides. Harvesting them from your own garden, you can rest assured their vitamin content is at its peak. Nor do you have to worry about what chemicals may have contaminated the food, as you can control what you put into the soil.
As grocery costs climb every day, people who grow their own produce say one of the most pleasant rewards is how much they save on groceries. The initial investment that goes into sweet soil, containers and trellises is paid back many times over in both material and intangible ways. Many fruits, herbs and vegetables can be easily propagated from cheap seeds and cuttings that you may actually just discard as kitchen scrap. Mint for instance, is easy to grow from stalks, and ginger can be grown just as easily from a piece you brought home in the grocery bag.
Growing your own produce is good for the planet as well. Using organic compost made from kitchen waste reduces the impact on landfill. Commercial farming has had a massive impact on the earth's resources, from trees cut down to make way for farmland to chemical fertilisers used to maximize yields, but leach into soil and poison groundwater sources. Using what you have grown, you rely less on vegetables that have been flown into the UAE; shrinking your family's carbon footprint in the process.
Starting your garden
There's a special kind of joy to be found biting into a luscious tomato or crisp lettuce leaves that you have grown yourself. Home grown produce sprinkles a bit of you on to your cooking. So what produce can you grow in the UAE? Nifal Ali of Ace Garden Centre says, "This is a good time to prepare the soil for the rowing season which starts in September. Warm weather vegetables such as tomatoes, eggplant, peppers and cucumbers will grow well in your garden. Fruits can also grow well in our region, though they require larger containers for potting. Among fruits, lemon, lime, grapefruit, figs and guavas are good choices."
Before you begin, choose your potting container with care. While empty cartons and yoghurt boxes can all be recycled to hold soil and function as a plant container, there must be a hole at the bottom to allow surplus water to drain away from the soil. Some herbs can even be grown in water. Larger containers will need less frequent watering, while you need to keep checking smaller containers to ensure that the soil hasn't completely dried out.
Critical for a good harvest is the quality of soil. For example, vegetables must have good, loamy, well-drained soil to grow well. Also, avoid planting your vegetable next to a deep root plant, which will steal nutrients, advises Nifal. You can up the nutrients in the soil by adding compost or making your own at home.
Balcony gardeners will find a Bokashi bucket a great investment to maximise yields for your fruit and vegetable container garden; as well as be a sustainable urban farmer. Choose a Bokashi bucket according to your usage and the space available in your kitchen. Bokashi buckets come in different sizes, allowing you to choose one that suits the space available and the amount of kitchen scraps produced in your home. Any type of natural waste - such as leftover food, vegetable scraps, tea leaves, tea bags, small amounts of paper, coffee grounds, wilted flowers, tissues, and even meat - can be composted in the bucket. For more information, see www.bokashidubai.com.
Finally, always remember that adequate sunlight is essential and therefore place your plants away from shade.
A Quick Chat on Slow Food
Laura Allais-Maré, leader of the Slow Food - Dubai Convivium, tells us about the urban farming movement in Dubai.
When did you start growing your own food? What kind of food can be successfully grown in Dubai?
Though I have only been in Dubai for less than three years, I have been growing my own food for many years. Right now in my garden I currently grow chilli, bananas, various basils, lemon, mango, neem, mint, rosemary, lemon grass, oregano, moringa, curry leaf, sweet potato, lemon balm, avocado, fig, roses, tarragon and thyme. During the winter months I have grown tomatoes, many different salads, borage, chard, spinach, arugula, garlic, onions, eggplant and cucumber.
How did your interest in the slow food movement develop? What convinced you that this is the way food should be?
My mother was involved with Slow Food many years ago. When I came to Dubai, I looked for a chapter and not finding one, I made enquiries about starting one myself. I believe that there should be much more emphasis on the nutritional value of food. Far too much attention is given to bacteria and unclean cooking surfaces, and not enough on the pesticides and toxic chemicals that are found on and in our food, from the farm to the table.
What is the biggest challenge that urban gardeners in Dubai face?
Apart from the obvious heat, there is the high salinity in our water and the lack of nutrients in the sand. But these are all aspects that can be managed with the right knowledge and techniques. Our Balcony and Urban Gardening Group of the Middle East can be found on Facebook and is open to everyone.
How did the idea of an urban garden on the roof of the Time Oak Hotel in TECOM, Dubai, come about?
Time Hotels have committed to the Snail of Approval programme with Slow Food Dubai. In this endeavour, they have made available their rooptop garden space. Volunteers from Slow Food Dubai will be managing all aspects of the planting and growing side, while the hotel is paying for the infrastructure.
What is your vision for this garden?
It's going to be a garden that produces vegetables and herbs. The scope is to teach, educate and raise awareness in the community, of what is possible to grow in the UAE. Schools in the vicinity will be invited to take part in the project. We will be applying permaculture and organic farming practices to the garden. We will be using organic and heirloom seeds. No chemical fertilisers of toxic pesticides will be used.
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