BRYAN, Texas — Inflation, supply chain issues, delays on foreign imports, and food prices have all been on the rise since 2020.
However, the plunging prices have pushed one woman to start her own garden, which she has been maintaining since the height of the pandemic.
Kathie Murphey Hitt lives in Bryan and has gained her green thumb to save money while working to alleviate a bigger problem: how much groceries weigh on her budget.
"I don't even go look at the prices anymore," Hitt said.
Nearly four million Texans experience food insecurity, and many food banks have been struggling to help families as of late.
"I got a pack of seeds for like $2 dollars, and that's got like thousands of seeds in it," she noted. "If you think about that it's very inexpensive to go get a get a bag of soil, put it in a pot and grow it."
As the need for stable sources of food grows, she has partnered with Sweet Oak Collaborative to address community needs like food and housing. Her harvest of what she sowed blossoming into savings.
"I would say we're saving at least 50 to 100 dollars, minimum," Hitt said. "Right now in this economy that's a lot."
A new study finds that 87% of Americans plan on gardening this summer. In fact, one in three said that the reason why they're doing it is to help cut grocery costs.
"What's a bell pepper like, it's over a $1 now just for on bell pepper," Hitt noted. "I mean, I haven't looked in so long because I'm growing it here."
However, gardening is often shrouded by a misconception that has plagued the hobby, which is that you need to be an expert in order to have a successful garden. However, Hitt says she isn't an expert, and that she's found her own successes in her own backyard.
"I don't have a green thumb either I'm just trial and error," she said.
All you really need is just some seeds, soil, and a pot. Those three ingredients can soon lead to your own start of homegrown food, and savings this summer.
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