Herbs: They offer a small business opportunity

Bob Ewing — People are desperate to generate sufficient income so that they can provide for their families; some have several jobs, just to achieve this; others have only the state to depend upon, and still others have nothing. This is unacceptable. There are ways out of this economic morass. One is to start your own business; however, a large percentage of new small businesses fail quickly and they do so for many reasons.

If a business is to succeed, two things are important; one is time, you will not get rich overnight. The second is knowledge; it is vital to know the business you are in.

Growing herbs in your backyard or expanding beyond your yard and using the yards of neighbours, friends and family is a potentially sound business opportunity.

But first; there are some questions you need to answer.

1- How much time do you have to devote to your business?
2- How much space do you have (indoors, outdoors, or both)?
3- What herbs do you want to grow and sell?
4- Who will you sell to; (general public, restaurants, stores)
5- What is your competition?
6- What will you charge?
7- Can you produce consistent quality herbs and on schedule?

Who will buy herbs? Local restaurants are possibilities. Consistent quality and delivery are musts. You will need to be able to deliver quality herbs when the chef wants them and chefs can be very demanding in what they want. This can be a tough market to crack but if you are determined and professional in your approach you can develop a consistent market for your herbs.

Grocery stores, especially, the smaller locally owned ones can be a good market. I have sold herbs (basil) to several small family owned grocery stores and generated a small profit. It more than covered my time and the cost of growing the herbs.

Will you sell fresh herbs, plants (seedlings) or dried herbs?

Basil, chives, cilantro, dill, oregano, rosemary, thyme and parsley are the most commonly used culinary herbs. Lemon balm is also popular. Do some research and find out what herbs are being sold in your area.

If you have a site that lets you set up a greenhouse and allows ready access, including parking for customers, then you may want to consider selling herb seedlings for home gardens. Many people want to grow their own herbs but prefer to start the process from a seedling plant rather than from seed.

Regardless of your choice of what to grow and who to sell to, you will need business cards; it is also wise to find out the zoning laws where you are located if you are planning to run the business from home and look into insurance.

A complete business plan may not be necessary; but you do need to know the market. Before you put a seed in the ground; find out who your competition is, what they are selling to whom they are selling and what they charge.

Starting the Family Organic Garden: Plant Selection

  Bob Ewing - Food is best when it is fresh, and it is freshest when it comes from your yard. Gardening does more than put food on your table; it allows you to connect directly with nature and gives you a great reason to go outside. It also is a fun, family activity.

When you decide to begin an organic, vegetable garden, get the process started by having a family conversation. Meal time is perfect for talking about food; if you do not have a garden or a vegetable garden, then announce you are doing so and need some help.

Now this announcement may not be greeted by much enthusiasm, at first, however, let the family know, all you are looking for now, are suggestions on what to plant. The most successful gardens begin by planting vegetables that your family is already eating.

A salad garden may not get much respect but a pizza or pasta garden may. Both pizza and pasta, well tomato sauce, can use similar ingredients, for example, tomatoes, onions, green peppers. Both gardens can benefit from a few herbs, basil, thyme and oregano.

Now that you have made choices about what will grow in your first organic garden; tomatoes, onions, green peppers, basil thyme and oregano, it is time to buy the seeds. Buy organic and heritage seeds. This way you know what you are getting, and if you plan to save seeds, will be certain you have quality seeds for next year.

Leave the seed catalogues out, pass them around and let the family have an opportunity to select varieties. It is fine to buy more seeds than you can plant, put the seeds, you do not use, in a sealed container, a zip lock bag will do, and place them in a cool dark place, I use the fridge. They will keep until the following spring and likely longer. These saved seeds are your insurance that you have the beginnings of a future garden, right in your kitchen.

As spring advances, it is time to select a garden site; your pizza-pasta garden will need a site that gets eight hours of sunlight per day. If this is your first organic, vegetable garden, I would start small; a ten foot long by four foot wide plot is ample. A site this size, and you can add some beans and a few flowers for the table, will grow enough food while being manageable.

Once the site is selected it is time to prepare the bed. There are two ways to do this; one is to dig and fill; the other, my favourite is the no-dig. Why no dig, simple, I enjoy growing things but see no value in working any harder than necessary, that is my personal reason. My gardener reason is this: when you break up the soil you are disturbing a community that will help you garden. This community has many, many residents; some so small that your unaided eye cannot see them. You want their help so do not destroy or disturb their home.

Next week we will show you how to start a no-dig bed together.

Turn the lawn into a food forest

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Bob Ewing - I do not like lawns. Why? They waste good growing space. Space that could be used to grow food, food so fresh, that your mouth begins to water while you are picking it.

I understand that in some circumstances, a lawn is necessary, after all the kids do need a safe place to play and the dog has got to get outside. Family picnics are great fun on summer weekends and the backyard is a fine place to have them.

However, if you have a yard, try reducing the space you need for the kids, pets and family gatherings. Consider converting that space to an edible forest garden.

Lawns take time they need cutting and watering for example, and to what purpose, so the yard can look great. This is a matter of perspective, of cultural prejudices; a great looking yard appears like a golf course. I prefer a yard that looks more like an urban farm or even better an urban or backyard food forest.

Lawns are unnatural and because they are, they are very demanding. The yard does not want to be a lawn; it does want to grow up and become a forest. This is Nature’s Way, so rather than fight Mother Nature, which will be a constant battle that you never actually win, go with the flow, and turn that unnatural space into a flourishing food forest.

Your lawn wants to follow Nature’s way and eventually become a forest but the constant maintenance that a lawn requires prevents this natural progression from taking place and creates considerable work for the homeowner.

Free the yard and let it grow, enable an ecosystem to develop and you will reap the rewards, fresh fruit, herbs and vegetables for the table. Now, the resources used to help the garden grow, take the form of an investment, rather than an expense.

The water used, for example, contributes to food for the table not green grass you must cut.

Include a few native plants in the overall design, and songbirds and butterflies will visit and move in. This will help control the bugs and pollinate the plants, a win-win situation. A bonus is the beauty of the birds and butterflies and the morning birdsong singing the world awake.

Start small and do your homework first. What plants are native to your area? What vegetables, no matter where they originate, are best suited to your design.

Slow and steady will rule the day, so pick a section of the yard where you will begin, and then determine what will grow best there. Study plant guilds, what plants do well with other plants. A future article will explore this idea in greater detail.

I suggest getting a copy of Gaia's Garden: A Guide to Home-Scale Permaculture by Toby Hemenway. Hemenway’s book is perfect for the homeowner who wants to turn the yard into a backyard edible forest garden; until next week, happy gardening.