There was a time when almost every house on the reserve had a garden. Some were huge, others small. Some reserves had community gardens where a bunch of families pooled their labour, resources and time. They grew potatoes, carrots, turnips, and squash which last all winter long in root cellars. Onions were braided and hung in a dark closet. Tomatoes, cucumbers, beans, peas, beets and corn were canned or pickled. Berries and other bush and tree fruits were canned, dried or processed into jams. Our late grandmother put up hundreds of jars of garden produce and berries each year, along with many jars of canned and dried meat and pemmican. They had no freezers back then so it took a lot more work to preserve food than it does today.

Our old people enjoyed fresh fruit and vegies all summer long and they made sure they had nutritional food set aside for the winter. Just as important, they did not have to spend their hard earned money on foods: they could grow and pick on their own. 

Today we know there are high levels of poverty among our people and that groceries are expensive. But you seldom see gardens on reserves anymore, or in back yards in the cities. Many old people I have talked to over the years express sadness, and sometimes frustration, that many of our people no longer work with the earth to provide for themselves. There is also concern about our people eating too much fast food, which we now know are significant causes of diabetes, obesity and other health problems associated with poor nutrition. 

Growing our own food is cheap! Studies have been done about how much growing our own gardens can save us in grocery bills. These are called cost analysis studies, they compare the cost of growing vegetables against the cost of buying them in the grocery store, and have shown that the average cost saving ratio is 1 to 25. In other words, for each $1 you invest (seeds, fertilizer, water) you reap $25 worth of garden groceries. Spend $50 and you reap $1,250 worth. A $4 package of lettuce seeds will provide a month's worth of salad for your family. $15 worth of baby tomato plants will produce 60 lbs of tomatoes (25 cents per lb. home-grown vs an average of $2.00 lb. from the grocery store). That's a lot of savings.

Things are looking up and our grandparents would be pleased to know that more people are recognizing the value of growing our own foods. Last year in Saskatoon there are 25 community gardens supported by the CHEP community garden network. Some reserves like Beardy's and Okemasis are bringing back community gardens and Harvey Knight has taken the lead at Muskoday on a large organic garden. 

Growing your own food can be easy, fun, and inexpensive.

You do not need a large space to garden. Many vegies, herbs, and fruits can be grown in small places, and in planters or buckets. Some people in apartments have container gardens on their decks and patios, or on window ledges. Plant a few mint seeds and you will have mint tea all winter long to enjoy and help fight sore throats or colic.

Our attempts at gardening have had varying results. Tyrone built us a beautiful garden, all fenced in to keep horses and dogs out, and with the help of our buddy Marjorie we made a few raised beds. We were set! However, last year we had more tomatoes that we could deal with and our corn failed. Our potato plants produced pitiful yields (about 3 small potatoes each) but we got tons of carrots. Like anything else, it's a learning process, and after consulting with buddies and YouTube I am ready to take on the challenge again.  

There are many benefits of growing our own food. You can grow whatever you want, if you like pickles you can grow lots of cukes and beets. It relieves stress; it is soothing and relaxing to work with the soil. You get exercise and it takes your mind of work or your problems. Get the kids involved for some positive family time and it teaches them responsibility and pride in producing their own food. You can avoid all the nasty chemicals that commercial growers use like pesticides and toxic fertilizers and it saves money. Growing our own food is a step towards regaining Indigenous knowledge, like how to turn herbs into medicines like our old people did. Food is a gift from the Creator and taking back control over our food production and harvesting is a big part of what is now known as the Indigenous food sovereignty movement.