
Grow Your Own Food
Extension offers myriad resources to help you grow your own foods. Sign up for a class or workshop, or select from an array of Extension and University of Florida publications.
Organic Gardening
Meet the Plant
"Meet the Plant" is a series of presentations to introduce plant families of important agricultural and cultural crop plants. This series is intended to expand the awareness and familiarity of the general public with different Florida crops. To complement your crop growing knowledge, these topics include the natural history, center of origin, phytochemistry, and agricultural history of different crops within different plant families. Sign up for a class or workshop (search on term "meet the plant").
- Bean family (Meet the Plant: Fabaceae)
- Cabbage family (Meet the Plant: Brassicaseae)
- Nightshade family (Meet the Plant: Solanaceae)
- Squash family (Meet the Plant: Cucurbitaceae)
Grow-Your-Own-Foods Workshops
- Chickens 101
- Organic Food Gardening Series
- Introduction (PDF)
- Container Gardening (PDF)
- Frost Protection (PDF)
- Compost - Part 1 (PDF), Part 2 (PDF)
- Transplants (PDF)
- Irrigation (PDF)
- Companion Planting (PDF)
- Cover Crops (PDF)
- Fruit Trees (PDF)
- Vegetable Crops, Cultivars & Ecology (PDF)
- Pest Management (PDF)
- Attracting Beneficial Insects (PDF)
- Edible Mushrooms 101 (PDF)
- Cottage Foods
- Part 1 (PDF)
- Part 2 (PDF)
- Food Safety (PDF)
- Backyard Honey Beekeeping (PDF)
Contemplative Food Gardening
- Introduction (PDF)
- Feed Your Head: Edible Landscaping & Design (PDF)
- Growing Food When People & Place Matter: Florida Climate, Crops and Soils (PDF)
- Ancient Traditions: Companion Planting and Biodynamic Agriculture (PDF)
- Soil Food: Compost & Earthworms (PDF)
- Back To The Future: Contemplative Design & Container Gardening (PDF)
- Sacred Community: Attracting Beneficials (PDF)
For information on locally grown foods, visit our Local Food page.
Resources
Important Links
- Sarasota County Local Farm and Food Economy (PDF)
- Benefits of Local Foods (PDF)
- USDA/ERS Report "Local Food Systems: Concepts, Impacts, and Issues"
- USDA/ATTRA “Local & Regional Food Systems"
- Community Food Security Coalition
- Ken Meter: Building a Local Food Economy
- The Local Food Movement: Steps to Becoming a "Locavore"
Local Food Sources
- Florida Market Maker
- Florida Farm Link
- LocalHarvest.org
- EatWell.org
- EatWild.com
- Florida Organic Growers
- FL Dept. of Ag: State Farmers Markets
- ATTRA Local Foods Directory
Local Farmers Markets
Learn More
- Agriculture
- Production
- Ag in the community