I was raised by a hippie and spent most of my time in the garden as a kid. Ultimately, that led to me being able to grow pretty much anything, any time of the year. Here's my (very basic) guide to growing your own food:

(Disclaimer: I'm not a professional, so keep that in mind. I also completely understand that not everyone has access to seeds, soil, etc. This is just what I've figured out over the years.)

- seedlings are good if you're just getting into growing food. They're a little pricier (ranging between $1.99 - $7 per set where I live) but they're good because you've already gotten one of the trickier parts out of the way- actually getting the thing to grow in the first place.

- you can find seedlings at most garden centers during the spring and summer months, but you can also find them in places like walmart at certain times of the year.

- if you're just starting out and dont have much space to grow food, an indoor container garden is a great way to start. I still do this during the colder months and I've been growing food for 10 years now. Just get a container (I like to use old salad containers, the kind you get with greens at the supermarket), it can be literally anything so long as you're able to poke some holes in the bottom to provide drainage. Just fill it up with soil and you're good to go!

- soil. Most of the time, you can't just use soil from your yard as it tends to not be airy enough for produce (found this out the hard way, although maybe in some areas it's different) but that doesnt mean you need to go buy the expensive stuff from the garden centre that claims to work miracles. Lots of dollar stores and supermarkets sell smaller bags of potting soil as well as garden soil- potting soil is generally a grainier soil meant for potted flowers and such, whereas garden soil is more aerated and nutrient rich- which is good for growing vegetables. However, potting soil is cheaper and plants arent really as fussy and delicate as we think. I would however suggest getting a container of powdered veggie fertilizer, or making your own to add nutrients to the soil.

- fertilizers!!! I'm still new to using fertilizers but I've seen them really give my plants a boost. I get the cheap fruit and veggie kind you can pick up from the garden center, but you can also make your own. There's usually a specific ratio of fertilizer to soil, but it tends to give you more info on the back of the package.

- okay, now my favourite part- the solar punk part of growing food. Being able to grow your own food is an incredibly powerful skill to have- not only does it save you money, but it also puts even just a little less money into big food corporations pockets. Seeds can be expensive, yeah, but there's loads of ways you can get them for free: I've experimented with taking the seeds out of a piece of produce and then growing it (peppers, carrot tops, onions that have gone bad, strawberries, squash, etc) and I've had great results over the years. Not only does it reduce food waste but it's also great to not have to buy seed packets that can range from $2 - $10 depending on the store, variety, etc. Another great way to get seeds is to check out if your community has a local seed library; some libraries have them, some don't. If you have one in your area, take advantage of it!! It's there for people to take. If you don't have a seed library near you, ask around your community if anyone has seeds they don't want anymore, or have an abundance of. In my experience fellow food growers are lovely people who are more than happy to share their resources with others<3

- seed starting can be tough, and I'm not NEARLY experienced enough to act like I know what I'm doing when it comes to that (I can start stuff from seed, yeah, but also.... I've had a lot of failures too.) But there are loads of videos and tutorials out there that cover the topic in depth and break it down into easy steps for beginners:)

- some easy plants to start growing are tomatoes, herbs, lettuce/green mixes, beans, and squash if you have the space. They're all very hardy and are high yield crops:)

- bottom watering is best for things in pots imo because it actually gets water to the roots as opposed to just the top layer of soil, leading to fungus/mold on your soil & plants. It's simple too- get a container larger than the one your plants are in, fill it with water, and set the pots directly in the container. It might take a few hours but it's totally worth it

- grow lights can be really great if you want to upgrade your system, but they're not necessary as long as you have some sort of light source. There are grow light bulbs you can pop into any lamp that you can get at most hardware stores which is a great way to dip your toes in the waters of grow light setups.:)

- if you've got the space and energy (growing food can be a lot of work) an outdoor raised bed or an outdoor container garden can help get a much higher yield each growing season. There are lots of tutorials and info out there about both of those things so I'm not going to get into that, but I will say it generally requires higher quality soil (garden soil or topsoil) and more of it.

- mulch is fantastic to put on top of your soil and around your plants as it acts like a ground cover, keeps the soil damp for longer, and will decompose over time to create nutrient rich earth for your plants. You dont have to go out and buy any, most tree maintenance companies will supply you with free mulch as it's easier to give it to people than have to pay to get it removed. If you dont have access to that though, you can make your own mulch by layering bits of old leaves, smaller twigs, and other organic matter.

- layering your plants (for example, you might plant corn in a raised bed then add root vegetables and shade loving veggies in between the gaps to maximize space) is a great way to take full advantage of your space, and can also protect your garden as a whole. Don't make it too squished though

- different crops thrive at different times of the year, so keep that in mind when planting outside. I can't list the growing season of all the plants out there, but here's a rough guide:

Spring: leafy greens like kale, lettuce, bok choy, swiss chard, etc & root vegetables (they thrive in the slight warmth and damp soil)

Summer: nightshades (tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, etc), cucumbers, and beans & corn thrive in the summer months where there's a lot of heat and sun throughout the day

Fall/early winter: root vegetables, cruciferous vegetables(think broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, etc) and leafy greens (kale, lettuce, bok choy, etc) thrive in the chillier months right before the frost sets in

- growing food is not only great to cut down on costs for yourself, but also builds community with your neighbours. Setting up a produce trade every now and then or simply giving your excess produce to your neighbours builds a sense of community like nothing else. The sharing of resources is much more powerful than people think!

- certain nonprofits will also take fresh produce to give to people in need, so if you have an abundance of something I'd look into that

- you can also sell it! Either online (like a community Facebook page) or at farmer's markets. You can also set up a produce stand by your house, I've seen some people do that and it's a great way to make a bit of money and share food with your community

- if you don't think you'd be able to maintain a full garden on your own (I've run into that issue before. When I was first learning to live with my disability I bit off much more than I could chew in terms of gardening and most of my plants died because I was just too weak to take care of them consistently. Don't ever feel bad if that happens, it's a lot more common than you think) Then I'd suggest starting with a couple plants indoors, or ask your friends and family if anyone would be willing to do a group garden, splitting up the labour during the growing season then splitting up the crops once harvested.

A previous gardener told my client that 'sometimes raspberries just fade away'. Uh, no. Raspberries are survivors. They will survive neglect, forming thickets over the years, just doing their own thing and slowly spreading. If you want the best fruit yield, you will want to give them a lot of fertility and irrigate properly, but no, they don't 'fade away'.

This gardener also made the choice to cut the canes, floricane and primocane both, down to two feet tall. Just below the bottom wire on the trellis. This is infuriating to someone like me who cares a bit too much about plants for a number of reasons:

1. Reduces fruit yield. Even cutting them back to 6 feet reduces yield, much less to 2 feet!

2. The new growth does reach above the wire, obviously, but it's a lot weaker than the over wintered cane, so if I tie by that, it's liable to rip off the branch entirely.

3. They are now extremely branched and much more crowding is going on knee to waist height. Annoying to pick at that level, and there's less light and airflow. This means less photosynthesis per cane and a greater risk of disease.

4. They left the spent floricanes! Bah.

5. It is my considered opinion that you should prune and tie canes at the same time. Like, even just from an efficiency standpoint. If prev gardener had done this, they might have noticed after the first cane that they were creating a problem.

6. They didn't even remove the canes that were too far away from the trellis.

7. If you did think they were weak and fading away, then why in the good green world would you prune away three quarters of their mass?

Ah. Between 3 & 7 I just realized why prev gardener thinks raspberries just fade away sometimes. Don't prune them like this.

I feel like I shouldn't leave without saying what I do so here:

1. Grow in a row with a trellis consisting of two sturdy posts and a wire strung at 5 feet/150cm ish.

2. In the fall, after they have dropped their leaves, cut out the canes that overwintered last year and fruited in the summer. These would be good to use in a bug hotel or deadhedge.

3. Tie any canes that are within a foot of the trellis at their base to the wire. Use a square knot around the canes so it can't sinch down:

4. Once it's tied at the wire, arch the tip over and tie that down too, so it's not flopping all over the place. You can shorten it a bit if you want. This is a simplified drawing to give you the idea of what I mean:

5. Dig up any canes that are too far to reasonably tie to the trellis, and either give them away or replant them closer if there's space. Or make a new row.

6. Mulch over the winter, and then feed with rich compost in the spring. Cover that with a layer of mulch.

7. If you're in a dry summer area, you will get a much better harvest by irrigating. One good strategy is a soaker hose run under a layer of mulch.

Just when my brain is getting bored with winter garden prep, oh look, it's seed-starting time! And just when that is getting boring, its time to transplant, and direct sow! And then its pruning and training and mulching time. Harvesting is great, but when I'm getting bored of that- Don't worry, it's almost time to chop-and-drop and settle the garden down for winter. Oh look, seed catalogues will be arriving soon!