In Africa, a home garden can make a vital difference

Hard work as it is, growing one's own vegetables is seen as a leisure activity in the UK. But in some parts of Africa, a simple kitchen garden can mean the difference between hunger or nourishment.
GardenAfrica is a UK based charity that works in sub-Saharan Africa to establish home gardens. In these gardens, fruit, vegetables and medicinal plants are cultivated to promote health and self sufficiency, free of debt and dependency. GardenAfrica fosters self reliance by training people to teach others in their community about companion planting, with the most effective use of water and other available resources. Thus simple kitchen gardens can supply a community with meals and healing herbs.
One such project is currently unfolding in Swaziland, which will soon see the development of 50 home training gardens. Each garden will then extend training to at least 100 budding gardeners in their area. By the end of this program, we expect to have supported the nutritional development of around 5,000 rural families, at a cost of only £24 per garden.
We are fundraising for this initiative now. Can you spare £24 to help a fellow gardener support their family? We would really welcome your donation to GardenAfrica. www.gardenafrica.org.uk
What can you do to help us celebrate the wonder of sustainable kitchen gardening?

• Share seeds with another gardener.
• Host a dinner party, using produce from your own garden, or window box. In exchange for the meal ask your guests to donate to GardenAfrica(like Valerie Ferguson who recently raised £300 from her guests in Bath).
• Take cuttings - and set up a stall.
• Host a harvest or planting party.
• Introduce people to kitchen gardening in your area by hosting a practical workshop.
• Become a friend of GardenAfrica, or a local food gardening charity.

Growing your own food:
You don't need a big garden to experience the rewards of growing your own food! Even if you live in a flat you can grow herbs, salads and tomatoes in pots on your balcony, window box or kitchen counter.
We recommend 'tumbling tomatoes' which grow happily in hanging baskets and tumble downwards - no staking required! Strawberries do well in hanging baskets too. Inventive gardeners in city flats can even grow new potatoes in a bucket or bin. Homegrown fruit and vegetables are free from chemicals and have zero air miles. As they haven't been picked before time, or kept in storage, they taste amazing!
Children learn to connect the food on their plate with the plant in theground rather than with a supermarket. To get your children interested ingrowing their own food, start them out on radishes. Radishes grow veryquickly so impatient kids don't have to wait too long to eat their very first crop.