Eating Local and Gardening Can Be a Fruitful Retirement Experience
“You are what you eat,” the old saying goes. The food we eat can play a major role in our health and overall quality of life.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, adults age 60 and older have unique nutritional needs, and a diet containing a variety of foods from each food group can help to reduce the risk of developing or accelerating chronic ailments such as high blood pressure, diabetes, hypertension and heart disease.
But our food choices are rarely just for health alone—the foods we eat can provide pleasure to our tastebuds, bring people together and even have far-reaching positive impacts on local communities and the environment. There’s one way to ensure you’re getting the freshest of the fresh, while also boosting local economies and reducing the distance your meal had to travel to get to your plate: eating local.
With 86% of VRS retirees living in Virginia, here’s a closer look into the commonwealth’s edible offerings. (Though local eating can be enjoyed no matter where you live.)
Eating With the Seasons
There are few joys in life quite like perfectly in-season fruits and vegetables. Truly, there’s no comparison between local summertime blueberries and the year-round grocery store varieties shipped from thousands of miles away. The next few months are prime-time for lots of Virginia-grown produce, including berries, melons, peaches, cucumbers, tomatoes, squash, eggplants and more. The Virginia Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services’ Virginia Grown site keeps a seasonal calendar of Virginia fruits and vegetables.
Finding Farms and Farmers Markets Near You
Sometimes finding locally grown and produced items takes a little more effort than normal grocery shopping, but with farms and farmers markets in all regions of the commonwealth, it may be easier than you think. Visit the Virginia Grown sitefor a directory of local producers of fruits, vegetables, dairy, seafood and more. You can also find a map and listing of farmers markets throughout the state. Not only do farmers markets showcase the uniqueness of a locality and foster a sense of community, they also give us the opportunity to form a closer relationship with the people who produce our food. If you have a question about how something is grown or raised, most farmers are more than happy to answer.
Starting Your Own Plot
If you have a backyard, a patio for containers or access to a community garden, you can enjoy the most hyper-local eating of all: the food you grow yourself. Beyond simply producing tasty, nutritious food, gardening may offer a mood boost and a plethora of health benefits. A review of various studies published in the medical journal Preventive Medical Reports found that the therapeutic effects of gardening reduced depression and anxiety symptoms, stress and mood disturbances in test subjects.
Starting or maintaining a garden also gives you the chance to share a hobby with others. Try coordinating what you plant with neighbors or friends who have their own gardens, or who want to share a garden. Get grandchildren involved from planting seeds, to watering, weeding and seeing the final result of their commitment: a bountiful harvest.
For tips on maintaining a current garden, or how to start one next year, visit the Virginia Cooperative Extension’s home vegetable gardening page; select Vegetable Gardening from the Lawn & Garden dropdown. Here you can find resources on how to plan your garden, when and how to plant, how to troubleshoot plant problems and how to process and enjoy your harvest.
