Plant a herb

I know what you're thinking: "Plant a herb? How will that help the environment?"

If you're the kind of person who considers themselves too busy to grow food plants, who thinks they have no space to grow food plants, or who believes they signal death to any plant that comes under their ownership, then planting a herb is a great thing to do.

Firstly, if you can grow a herb, you might just get the idea that you're not a "black thumb", which may encourage you to try to grow other plants you can eat.

If you can grow a fresh herb and add it to the food you cook, you'll quickly realise the difference that fresh-picked foods can make to your meals, diet, and sense of well being. This may encourage you to look for more ways to grow food plants, whatever your situation, and/or encourage others to do the same.

Finally, if you can grow a herb, you may be inspired to expand your range of herbs to include others -- even if all you have is a sunny windowsill. Herbs are among the more intensively-reared commercial crops. Grown in hot houses, under lights, and in hydroponic setups, herbs require a lot of inputs and energy to be grown in commercial quantities, on demand. But, choose the right herbs for your season and location, and they take comparatively little effort, energy or time to grow at home. And they add so much to your meals.

Yeah, your homegrown basil rocks that basil-and-tomato salad! Wouldn't it be cool if you grew the tomatoes yourself too?