Is there anything tastier than a freshly picked piece of fruit, vegetable or herb? I don't think so...



My grandma used to make homemade tomato sauce, with freshly grown tomatoes and freshly picked oregano and basil from her garden, smells so sweet, I don't believe there's a more satisfying aroma than that of freshly picked basil, I can almost smell it now just thinking about it. With my mind full of memories (all initiated by food smells, tastes and textures) I think back to that simpler time...times when we ate what we grew or what was grown nearby...I recall Saturday mornings, strolling down the avenue of our Brooklyn neighborhood, right there in the heart of New York City...with rows of vendors selling their fresh meats, vegetables, fruits, herbs and flowers...everything grown right there in my neighborhood (or not too far away, just like the farmers markets of today)...If grandma didn't grow it, we went to see who did...

Not only did the vendors allow you a little taste to be sure you went home with the flavors you expected, but they gave you a taste because they were proud of their crops...the accomplishment of hard work, dedication, perseverance and mostly pride, brought forth in the labors of their love...it was also a time to visit with your neighbors, trade recipes and enjoy the beauty of the day and all the wonderful smells that went with it...

Money may have been tight back in those days, but love was abundant and when food was grown and made with love, it was magnificent...that's the same feeling I get now when I visit my local farmers market, food co-op or a nearby grower, and you can too...You'll sense the pride each grower has in each piece of fruit, every vegetable and in every tender herb they've grown. There's no need for pesticides, no need for fancy packaging, no need to read labels to see where this magnificent food came from...You'll know without hesitation that this is from the earth of your community...

Growing up in New York, there wasn't much space for us to grow a garden, but we made do with what we had...Grandma always used small pots (a container garden) for the herbs, and being Italian, we went through many...and for her world famous tomatoes she had trellises moving upward to make room for the abundance of tomatoes she grew in her raised bed garden...now you must understand, we were apartment dwellers back in those days and grandmas garden was literally grown on the roof top...yup...a New York City roof top...that's the reason we didn't have a conventional row garden, but grandmas garden was magnificent...at least it was to me...

As I got older, moved to another big city & started a family of my own, gardening just didn't fit into my lifestyle, so I went and purchased my herbs and tomatoes at the grocery store where it seemed everyone went because all of the street vendors were now a thing of the past. Everyone went to the grocery store...it was convenient, it was cool in the summer and warm in the winter and I could get out of there in no time flat...but boy have times changed...

Now, many years later, I am a grandma myself...I live in the country where I have plenty of space to grow just about any type or size garden that I'd want to grow...I also have access to hundreds of local growers and farmers (and all within 100 miles of my home)...

But I decided I wanted to do a couple of things differently now that I was a little older, a little wiser and had a little more time on my hands...I wanted to give to my grandchildren the same wonderful memories my grandma gave me...to plant a garden together, to nurture our food which in turn nurtures our bodies, our minds, our hearts and our souls...I wanted them to know foods with no pesticides, foods that were grown right here in grandmas back yard...and even though I could have any type of garden I could ever want to have, I chose grandmas style of garden...A raised bed garden...the only difference is that I use cinder blocks instead of wood...this makes my beds last forever (wood will rot after a few years). Cinder blocks are easy for me and the grandkids to handle and build our beds with (it's like putting Lego's together). There's no need for nails, hammers or saws...which works out fantastically if you're gardening with children...My cinder block garden has given us years of wonderful fruits and vegetables, but by far the very best thing my garden has given me are wonderful memories with my grandchildren and hopefully, yes, hopefully for my grandchildren to have wonderful memories of me.

Grandma has been gone a few years now and I miss her tremendously...but every time I get a whiff of my own freshly grown basil, I feel like I'm 7 years old again, the reminiscent smell of the fresh air, mixed with the scents of herbs, vegetables and soil...I close my eyes, breath deeply and a smile comes across my face...thanks grandma...