It's perfectly acceptable to be self-sufficient in a few things, but something special happens when you commit to being self-sufficient in a whole class of foods. In our case we committed to be self-sufficient in what most people understand as vegetables.

We still buy fruit and we class fresh tomatoes as fruit, but other than that we grow everything ourselves. We of course still buy a huge amount of food: eggs, diary, grains, sugar, salt etc. But we eat between two and three meals a day that are dominated by the food we grow.

At this point you might wonder why 'committing' matters, that's what this chapter is about.

What do we mean by committing

I like to think about deciding to be self-sufficient as like committing to a weight loss diet, or to being a vegetarian. It's a conscious decision to live within some arbitrary set of constraints. We probably all know that when you are on a calorie controlled diet it's important not to break it, binge while on holiday and it's very hard to get back on that diet. It's the same with self-sufficiency, you need to commit and that commitment needs to endure.

It's easier than sticking to a diet though because you have invested a lot of time and effort in creating an abundant food supply.

Why bother?

Why bother imposing this arbitrary constraint on yourself? We do it because it's life enhancing, there is some constraint, but it's small by comparison with the benefits that accrue. let's step through those:

1. Your gardening efforts instantly become much more purposeful. That cabbage that you finally bring to maturity becomes a thing of wonder, something to anticipate and celebrate. You quickly forget that perfect specimens are readily available for £1 at the supermarket.
2. You eat much more of the produce you grow. You eat more home grown food in general, you eat more of the plant, you get more creative.
3. You really start to anticipate the arrival of the first strawberries in April, the peas in May and the new beans in June. Every season has it's delights!
4. You get to eat a much more varied diet. Rather than just eating the same lettuce, spinach, broccoli and onions every week of the year, you eat dozens of alternatives, swapping and changing a lot from month to month and even more from season to season
5. You eat a little of a lot. When you shop at the supermarket you tend to eat a lot of a small number of vegetables. When you eat what you grow you eat a small amount of a huge array of foods. I often have 12 different types of veg in a single meal, this is rarely cost effective when you buy from the supermarket

Unleash your creativity

One of the things Debbie and I really enjoy is the creative challenge. I focus on trying to grow the widest selection of healthy fruit and veg I can. Loving the challenge of growing a varied diet through the hungry gap in April, May and early June and growing early and late favourites. Debbie loves the creative challenge in the kitchen.

Feel the accomplishment

Growing all you eat results in a huge sense of accomplishment. This is greatly enhanced if you grow a surplus for your friends and family. I strongly recommend growing an intentional surplus, it's a great way of ensuring that you never worry about growing hungry yourself.

Take on the challenge

Growing year round takes creativity, discipline, effort and intellectual endeavour. It's a challenge, the challenge is a reward in itself, especially if you are retired.

Don't get seduced by the supermarket