I'm All For GMO - [Growing My Own!] - @Grow-Pro Let's You Know
By "GMO" I don't mean "genetically modified organisms", I mean 'GROWING MY OWN'
C'mon.. Everybody's Doin' It...
Ok, maybe not everyone, but it is a growing number. Some believe it is a trend. I believe it is simply the return of control to the people over the food that they ingest. The American grocery store today has almost more poison than food in it. The food that the much of the industry wants to feed us is just plain unhealthy. It is costing us in our wallets and costing us our health.
I think more people are realizing that their health and the well being of their family is worth the extra effort of self-sufficiency. Even if we cannot grow and produce all of the food that we eat, some is better than none.
As a father of two toddlers, a stay-at-home-dad, and small business owner - I know that finding the time to grow food for family can be difficult. But, it's not impossible. One suggestion that I will make is to grow for yourself and for your nearby family, friends, neighbors. If you do have an interest and are willing to put forth the effort - you can generate income on the side. I can show you how to do this and will be publishing information on this topic frequently. If you are interested in growing your own food for either yourself or for market, please feel free to ask questions! I can help.
We have a small tomato farm in Maryland. We're in our first year and have established a great demand for our product. If you're interested in learning more - stay tuned & follow along! I look forward to growing something better together.
That's why I "GMO" 😋
@Grow-Pro - I'm a micro-scale heirloom tomato farmer with a little over 100 Tomato Plants growing this year. However, I grew a few thousand plants from seed this year and sold some great looking tomato plants to some very happy customers. That helps me to cover the costs of my operation and also some investments needed to expand next year.
Want to know how I do it? I'd appreciate your resteem & votes - it's the fuel to my fire! Be sure to follow along if you're interested in how YOU can grow money on your property. 😎💰 Thanks! ~Brandon
Awesome post and I too have two little ones that I take care of during the day but still retain a night job that I'd like to lose. I already garden growing tomatoes, peppers, squash, herbs, onions etc. and have a pretty good green thumb. I do it mostly to show my kids where their food comes from and time outside with them. Most of it is seed harvesting for me but we eat lots of it too. This is right up my alley since I'd like to ditch the night job! Good stuff and you have my ear for sure. Following.
I'll never forget as a little kid how my dad always had a small garden behind the house. We'd eat radishes, carrots, onions, etc. out of it during harvesting times!
Yeah brother. Mine was my Granny. Such wonderful memories of her in the garden I have. Funny the things we remember. I hope my lil' ones retain our times in ours.
They will!
Thanks for your time @stillwater, I will do my best to help you get that garden monetized! You've already got the skill set and talent from the sound of it; now just have to setup the market for your product(s). That's where I can really offer some creative help & things to avoid - I've already made a bunch of mistakes for you, so you won't have to..😋
I think you have an excellent starting point, so I'd say you've got an elevated probability of earning. Social media and a green thumb goes further than you think. Maybe enough to rid the night job and have more time for the little ones! I'm on steemchat same handle if you ever want to shoot the breeze or have a questions. Thanks for reading!
Thanks for that and I'll def. keep in touch. I've actually been considering learning to keep bees as well and add them to the garden down the road. I look forward to your future posts.
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STOP@grow-pro Ha-ha very funny misuse of the acronym - LUVet! LOL 😃
Abolish toxic herbicides and GMO resistant lab experiments.
Thank you for being here (on earth), caring and sharing - Cheers!
😋 Thanks @ronmamita!! Don't panic, it's organic!
Trying my best to be kind to the Earth & doing my part to preserve the incredible foods of our past. I aim to add value to my environment, whether here on Earth or Steemin' through the interwebs. Don't encourage me, Now I'll never stop..LOL thanks again
@grow-pro Go - go grow-pro, YOU can do it! If you can't do it, then no one can!
GO-Go Grow-pro!
My apologies - encouragement slipped out, darn. LOL 😃
Now this is the quality a real man should have .... Growing food like a pro ....
I really loved your tittle intro .... Plant whisperer I am pretty sure you are the only one with that cool job tittle ..
Haha thanks @utfull, I might just be the only plant-whisperer on Steemit. Not for long if I can do anything about it. I hope more people find the incredible reward that's accompanied by "growing your own."
This year I've been able to give opportunity to many who've never grown anything and they even allowed me to sell them the plants. I was able to make them feel comfortable enough knowing they could ask me for help and I would be there for them. That is trust that is gained via my actions and the presence I've established where I live. My actions allow for that bridge of trust to built.
I was raised, thankfully, by great examples of man - the men in my life as a youth were strong, resilient, and depended almost solely upon their own efforts to achieve success or even just sufficiency.
I was taught to do for myself and for those that cannot. I was taught not to take, but to make. That builds a certain breed of confidence, not ego, that opens a door that remains closed for many. Confidence is the fuel of the creators, doers, thinkers; the 'unknown' is the fuel of the fearful. I was raised to take command over language and resist language taking control of me. I love words, but mostly verbs - it's all about action. 😎👍🏻
Glad you are doing this! We need more "growers"!! I usually grow a garden, but with a difficult family medical situation, this year I only planted a few things. Love your article.
Thank you @tinajordan. I hope everything works out well for you and that you may regain the great rewards or gardening. I love to grow plants and I love to grow food for my family. This year we are in business and now sharing the 'fruits & veggies) of our labor' with local consumers. It is always nice to hear from fellow gardeners! Thank you for your time and sending best wishes for good health to you and your family. Best, Brandon
I can't help but share this Intel with you and my other friends:
http://www.livinginpanama.com/panama-real-estate/property-taxes/
I bet you didn't know there's ZERO property taxes there for farm land under 150K in value, right?
If you do it right, you can have a house and a farm with no property taxes for many many years!
That would make the business even more lucrative. Places like Panama definitely interest me because of the property tax incentives.
In the USA we've been slowly boiled like the proverbial frog over the years, and no one realizes how bad things have become here. There are better alternatives to consider too.
You mentioned buying land and leasing it to a farmer too. Maybe I will buy some land. Would you consider "leasing" it? LOL
@Finnian, that would cost me hours in back rubs to even prepare my wife for that conversation..LOL I have been bouncing around some ideas of where I could/would go and I have no idea really. I have the best neighbors in the entire world where I am, so that makes it harder. We've only been here a year and the people around us would do anything for one another. It's remarkable how close the community is here. If we all go together, I suppose that would make it easier 😋
I know that West Virginia grandfathers property tax - which is better than most states. If you great grandpappy's pappy bought land - if it's inherited by you, then property tax stays the same as it ever was. I know a few people that own land down there and just because it's cheap!
I have a few acres of land out back to use here - that could be a few million dollars of tomatoes if I play my cards right. Then I can send all of our asses to Panama!😎
If the land was profitable enough, I suppose the government's extortion wouldn't be too painful to hand over. What are your property taxes there in Maryland?
Maryland property taxes fluctuate, due to a "phase in". 1.018% is average in my county, but for many properties here (not mine..lol but others) - that is a pretty hefty chunk of change. That's why they need passionate growers like me to provide them with delicious tomatoes:
We used to have a garden, but it's just not doable at the new place. Now we have a CSA share at a local farm to supply our veggies.
Have you thought about growing them out for seeds, since you are growing heirloom varieties? Seeds can be exchanged for other rare breeds, increasing your variety and ensuring rare breeds continue.
Seed Savers Exchange is a non-profit that facilitates this
Funny you said that @olyup, one reason I grow heirloom seeds is because they breed true, unlike many hybrids. I collect seed, so heirlooms are perfect for me. http://www.seedsavers.org is an awesome service! I buy seed from various exchanges and was also gifted a large seed collection from my neighbor's father who has passed. I began planting many of them this year simply to preserve fresh, viable seed. I plan to give quite a few to some great seedbanks once I become well established. I also do heirlooms because there is a great demand for them where I live and it doesn't take away from the local farms - I grow what they do not. 😎 It offers more variety for consumers and doesn't take away from local farmers near me because I'm filling a void in the market with virtually no competition around. Win-Win.
👍🏼👍🏼Double thumbs up for the CSA & supporting your local farm! Thanks for your time and commentary. Steem On!
As a person into preparedness, I often wonder how long seeds will last. I've bought a couple "Seed banks" online in the past and keep them as one of many emergency preps. How long should those air tight sealed containers last from what you understand please?
I've got several from different years that I keep in the freezer. My oldest is from 2009' and they were used in this years garden. They were still viable. I don't know if that helps but I would say a looooong time if stored right.
I have planted 5 year old tomato seed with great success. Corn is said to lose viability within two years, but I've seen it sprout after 4 years of improper storage, so estimates are sometimes way undershot. Here's a helpful source / list for seed viability:
Seed Viability Chart
Via High Mowing Seeds - a (one of the) company I buy seed from. Tomato seed can be viable for 7+ years in optimal environments. i never throw them out - worst case it's an experiment..haha