I once viewed organic produce with budget-conscious skepticism; is it really worth it? Then one day, I started reading books about sustainable food, starting with Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable, Mineral and ending with Sally Fallon's Nourishing Traditions. At the beginning of my reading marathon I started going to the farmer's market more often; by the end, I was ignoring the produce aisle at the grocery store unless it said both "organic" and "local" (or I personally knew the story behind the grower).

But: organic isn't cheap, and I'm not made of money. Inspired by these tips at Alternet, here are some ideas on how to afford organic food even if you have a limited budget:

• For staples like flour, oats, rice, and dairy, buy in bulk, preferably through a buying group. It's no secret that bulk prices are cheaper; but I'm talking real bulk, like 25-pound bags of organic whole-wheat flour and sharing 50 pounds of organic pinto beans with your friends. You'll need to figure out ahead of time how much you'll use, and try planning your meals to use your staples wisely.
  
• Eat only seasonal produce. You love asparagus, I know, but you're just going to have to wait until spring. Even if you can get organic asparagus this time of year, it's shipped from Chile, and trust me, it's not worth it. Even better than buying in season is buying at the end of the season, when the end of the harvest is overflowing market bins. On my shopping list this week: green tomatoes, which I make into jam and chutney; enormous heads of cauliflower, which I use along with potatoes in shepherd's pie and in soups; and pears, which I chop up on my oatmeal, bake into pies, and cook into preserves for the winter months.
• Join a CSA. In Community Supported Agriculture, you pay upfront (or a monthly amount) for a season's worth of produce. If the growing season is abundant, you share in the wealth (and vice versa) -- but you almost always end up with very well-priced organic produce at far less than you'd spend in the market.
• Preserve. Buy in-season; collect apples from a neighbor's tree; offer to help weed your friend's garden in exchange for her excess tomatoes; and freeze, can, and jam your wealth for the rest of the year. I'm looking forward to very low costs in January thanks to my busy preserving summer!
• Grow it yourself. If you're not yet an urban farmer or don't have much land, start small, with pots of herbs (those are super-expensive to buy and easy to grow), sprouts, lettuces, and fun crops like garlic (which can still be planted in most areas). If you really get into it, maybe you'll start using your garden to save in other ways, like garbage hauling costs; I now compost all my kitchen scraps and am reducing my garbage pickup to twice a month (and I've only been at this gardening stuff for a year and a half).

In a quest for sustainability, self sufficiency and money saving; folks nationwide are trading in their Scotts Turfbuilder for manure as they begin growing crops at home. Homegrown veggies and herbs sound wonderful to me, especially with the warm weather we are finally getting in Ohio. I can appreciate the ideas behind farming in suburbia, replacing your front yard with rows of crops is taking it a step too far. If I was a homeowner I would help anyone on my block till up and seed their backyard, but I draw the line at rows of soybeans in the front yard. Putting negative pressure on my property value by growing crops in your front yard makes me long for the rules and strictness of a good ol' home-owner's association.

A backyard garden can be loads of fun and makes for a great family project over the summer months. Divvying up the chores for a garden is a great way to share family time and show children the value of hard work. If you are getting ready to garden, be sure to check out this handy guide for growing vegetables. It leads you through site selection, soil prep and garden care. Everything you need to keep fresh produce on your dinner table all summer long.

If you do have a home garden, feel free to send me some of your wonderful homegrown veggies!

When I was a kid, my mother was always on the lookout for food bargains. From wandering around the DC docks in search of really fresh fish to dragging me through markets in Chinatown, she left no stone unturned. Bereft of consumer loyalty, she used to switch grocery stores like a soap-opera heroine switches lovers, always willing to dump a favored suitor in search of fresher corn or a better deal on broccoli.

Sometime in the mid-1980's, she dragged me to a rickety shack in Northern Virginia, telling me that we were going to a "farmers' market." I remember asking her why we wanted to buy a farmer. I didn't receive a satisfactory response, but the maniacal gleam in my mother's eyes told me that this wasn't just another trip to the store. When we got inside, I realized that we weren't in the market for farmers; rather, we were in the market for fresh produce. My mom's face lit up as she surveyed the array of vegetables. Ignoring the straggly appearance of the organic veggies and the stench of the occasional rotten potato, she filled her basket with tons of veggies that I soon saw, boiled to death, on our table. Within a few weeks, she was back, buying bushels of tomatoes and cucumbers, assuring me that I would love the wonders of "pickling."