Post #4191793

2026-07-22 04:08 UTC

So happy for you that you have the things that make that easy. Good climate, no pests or deer or rabbits or crows, or robins or other birds, considerate neighbours, access to water for irrigation all year long, and apparently no issues with weeds eh? And lots of access to cheap, safe compost too huh? Oh and the tools (and storage!) to spread compost, aerate soil, weed (wait you dont get weeds!), and manage things like planter beds or poles or netting or trellises or tomatoes cages? And you grow enough that you meaningfully cut down on groceries huh? What a lucky duck.

Replies (1)

@MonkRome@lemmy.world 2026-07-22 04:35

Certainly some of the things you listed can present challenges, but I really think our society mythologises planting and farming and that was really my point, which I made poorly because I was being too flippant. We act like producing food is an 80 hour a week job for only the smartest green thumbs when it doesn’t even take a fraction of that time and takes an accessible amount of skill. Provided you’re privileged enough to have access to 1/4 - 1/2 acre of sunny land, you could grow a decent portion of your food for under 10 hrs a week. I know people who do. Certainly expanding to that size takes some time prepping new beds, but maintaining existing beds and growing food in them is really not that much work. I maintain about 1500 sq/ft of food garden right now and outside of 5-15 hours of early spring prep I spend 1-2 hours a week in the garden through most of the actual growing season, and that’s probably an over estimation. Each season I expand a manageable amount, and that’s really the most time consuming because I am hand terracing a hill, 1 row each year. Certainly there is work, but acting like its super hard is just silly. I spend most of my time doing anything but gardening.

Open ##4205578