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Raised gardens will help cut grocery bills for Hastings families

Tuesday 4 October 2011, 12:42PM

By Hastings District Council

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HASTINGS

Three more Hastings families will be growing their own vegetables this summer after becoming the latest winners in the second Sus’d raised garden competition.

From a total of 765 entries, Kathleen Hargreaves (Hastings), Sinead Gage (Clive) and Megan Sangster (Flaxmere) have each won a raised garden with free plants and seeds and a tutorial on how to make the most of their new gardens.

Hastings District Council Sus’d project manager Angela Atkins says “the families will benefit greatly from being able to grow their own vegetables. Nothing tastes better than food you have grown in your own garden”.

"The raised gardens are relatively small but the savings to be made in the cost of vegetables can be significant. For example, a packet of around a thousand carrot seeds costs just a few dollars and could supply your family with carrots for a whole year," Mrs Atkins says.

“The winners of the raised gardens will be visited by an advisor who will help build the garden and plant it out in winter vegetables, before giving a one hour tutorial on how to get the most from it” Mrs Atkins says.

"You don’t have to have the traditional quarter acre section to supplement your weekly vegetable purchase – pots at the backdoor or on the deck can produce an abundant crop while growing your own vegetables can be fun and satisfying."

Other benefits from growing your own veggies include knowing when the food was picked and that you are eating fresher produce. You also know that chemicals have not been used during the production of the veggies and it’s also better for the environment as it cuts down on packaging.

The raised gardens will be installed at the winner’s homes next week.

Sus’d, is a Hastings District Council programme which helps people find ways of looking after the environment while saving money.