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Two Tomato

© Bob Ewing

The tomatoes are ripening. I will be able to savour the taste of cherry tomatoes picked within four feet of my kitchen table. It doesn't get much closer to home than that. If you can't grow tomatoes on your property than your next best bet is a community garden. If you have a Community Referral Centre where you live give them a call and ask about community gardens. They may be able to set you on the right path, or call your municipal office.

If you don't have a community garden nearby, then give some thought to starting one. Is there a vacant piece of land within three blocks of where you live? If yes do you know who owns it? Check with the municipality's realty office. They may be able to determine ownership.

Community gardens, on the local level, enable people who otherwise may not have access to land an opportunity to grow some of their own food. They not only give people the opportunity to grow their own food but help them develop community as they do. People generally talk with each other as they tend their gardens.

Community Shared Agriculture (CSA) is another way to provide fresh produce in a sustainable manner. People buy shares from a local CSA farm and during the growing season receive weekly deliveries of fresh fruits and vegetables. The consumers and the grower form a partnership and share the risks and rewards. If you can't grow your own in either a community garden or own your own land then the CSA still gives you good food from a source close to where you live. This reduces the ecological footprint of your food and provides health and happiness for your family, everyone wins.

You will need to negotiate usage with the owner in order to start a garden.

You may be asking why I am focusing on tomatoes. Tomatoes are great food even when cooked. It takes some skill to grow them in some climates but they are worth the time. Also, tomatoes contain lycopene.

What is Lycopene? Lycopene is part of a group of nutrients known as carotenoids. You are probably familiar with some of the nutrients in this group like beta-carotene and retinol which are both found in carrots. Similarly, Lycopene, in certain foods is the coloring agent. It does not have the vitamin A characteristics that beta-carotene and retinol do but is fat-soluble similar to vitamin A.

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