Homegrown pantry has many benefits

1. Freshness and flavor.
Fresh vegetables have the best flavor, and those you pick in your yard right before you eat them are the freshest available. You can grow varieties of vegetables prized for their eating qualities rather than their tolerance of long-distance shipping.

2. Convenience and a good diet.
Eating better is simplified, if you can step outside your door and obtain vegetables. In summer, your whole dinner can come from your garden. Just imagine a bowl of sliced zucchini sautéed with sweet onions and served with side dishes of tomatoes, green beans, potato salad and corn on the cob.

3. Sense of accomplishment.
Sitting down for dinner, knowing that food is on your plate because you grew it from seed is sure to give your ego a boost.

4. Saving money.
Some time spent growing vegetables can yield big savings on your food budget. As an example, $4 worth of bean seeds and $5 worth of fertilizer will plant a 100-foot row, and it could produce 100 pounds of beans, which retail for $1.50 per pound. A $1 tomato plant will produce at least $10 worth of ripe tomatoes.

5. Food safety.
The vegetables you grow yourself are among the safest you can get. There is very little chance of them harboring salmonella, E. coli or any other contaminants.

6. Organic and heirloom crops.
Historic tomato varieties, such as Brandywine, are scarce in stores but easy to grow on your own. You can be an organic vegetable grower, using natural fertilizers made from plants, animals and minerals. You will know if and when any pesticides are applied to the vegetables you eat.

7. Specialty crops.
Vegetables never seen in local stores and restaurants can be grown right in your yard. These may include crops like amaranth, cardoon, purslane and tomatillo.

8. Exercise.
Vegetable gardening activity will take you outdoors into the fresh air and sunshine where there is plenty of exercise to be had. Consider all the beneficial kneeling, bending and digging you can do. An hour spent raking or hoeing could be better than going to the gym.

9. Stress reduction.
Time in your garden will be more relaxing than time doing most anything else. You can concentrate on soil, plants and pollination rather than traffic congestion and deadlines. Destroying weeds after a rough day on the job is particularly therapeutic.

10. Smaller carbon footprint.
You will buy fewer vegetables from Mexico, California and other distant production areas if you grow a garden. The result is less petroleum burned to transport your food across the country. Growing vegetables gives you a smaller carbon footprint by reducing your contribution to air pollution.