How to raise a family on homegrown food

Coming from the bustling inner-city coffee bars of Wellington, my partner Brett and I had always dreamt of moving to the country. We longed to grow real food, be as self-sufficient as possible and raise our kids on meals made from scratch. 

We imagined these future children to be grounded in the seasons, understanding where their food came from, and knowing the taste of homegrown fruits and vegetables freshly picked and still warm from the sun. Along with this, I envisioned an enveloping kitchen space filled with the scent of freshly baked bread and gently simmering soup, garlic plaits and drying herbs hanging from the rafters, and baskets of seasonal abundance resting on the benches. I wanted my children to be truly connected to their food through their environment, and to know with certainty that what I was feeding them was nourishing, safe and free from harmful pesticides.

So, we took the leap. We bought an overgrown, insect-infested bungalow situated on a hectare of farmland in the tiny village of Karamea on New Zealand’s wild West Coast. The property needed huge amounts of work before we could even spend a night in it, and I’m sure our friends and family thought we were insane. But where they saw work, we saw potential. Thanks to our combined steadfast nature, and willingness to see beyond the weeds and hold on to our dreams, we created a beautiful home. We also established large organic gardens complete with a tunnel house and orchard, and grew a wide array of vegetables, fruits, nuts and berries.

In time we had two children – boys named River and Shea – and set about raising them on fresh homegrown food. They would join me in the garden at every opportunity – digging and playing in the soil, and harvesting produce, all the while naturally absorbing the practical skills and seasonal rhythms of growing food that would one day ground them as adults.

This lifestyle didn’t just fall into place. In fact, we made many mistakes along the way. We planted the wrong things in the wrong places, before taking the time to understand our climate and soil. We often found ourselves with too much of what we didn’t want to actually eat, while still buying pesticide-laden fruits and vegetables from the supermarket. We didn’t understand how to properly build soil, stagger our plantings or how to plant for pest resistance.

So I got researching and read every gardening book I could get my hands on (YouTube wasn’t much of a thing back then!). I took notes, drew plans and trialled many different methods. We spent time observing our land and climate, and learnt how to improve our soil and plant the right way. Over time we began to understand what worked for our space, and how to grow the right foods in a way that truly supported our family.

After years of building up the land, we felt a call to live even more closely with nature. When River was eight, we sold our homestead and bought a hillside of rainforest overlooking the Tasman Sea, where we built an off-grid home and began the next chapter of our food-growing journey.

This new environment came with its own set of challenges, but by using the same methods we learnt previously, we established a thriving food forest. In this smaller terraced space, we now have created a lush, layered ecosystem of espaliered fruit trees, perennial and annual vegetables, berries, herbs, flowers and native plants, all growing in harmony with the bush that surrounds it. We converted the bach that was originally on the land into a dedicated seedling house to allow us to raise strong, healthy plants year-round. We have created two thriving worm farms to help regenerate our soil and apply permaculture principles to our garden.

These systems have been refined over time, through observation and trial. But now, with a rhythm that works for our family, we aren’t reliant on the supermarket for our produce. Our larder is full of bottled fruit, fermented vegetables, homemade chutneys and sauces, and we make our own kombucha, wine and naturally fermented juice from the fruits grown on our land. 

Our boys are teenagers now, and while they’ve grown more independent, their connection to the land runs deep. I know their upbringing has instilled in them resilience and a sense of resourcefulness.

I truly believe this way of life is possible for most families. It doesn’t require a pristine homestead or years of experience, just an area for garden beds, a willingness to learn and some gentle guidance along the way.