I read an article earlier this week that questioned whether it was cost effective to grow your own food. It listed a ton of supplies needed to begin and suggested balancing the price of those supplies against the price of just purchasing the food outright…

It’s the kind of thing that can discourage a person from getting started, and let me say — as someone who does grow tomatoes and a veggie or two — that you don’t need to tick off a 25-item check list before going gardener. And, you can reap immediate returns — not just where your wallet is concerned, but in terms of the quality of the produce produced, as well.

If you live in an urban area and have only a small balcony like I do, I challenge you to give it a grow this season. Buy one large clay pot, enough soil to fill it, one packet of cherry tomato seeds and one wire hoop for support. All can be had for less than $15. My thumb is no greener than the next guy’s and I’ve managed to get oodles of fresh tomatoes during a season — far more than $15 worth!

And though I described my process, which has evolved over several years, in one of this blog’s first posts, you don’t have to spend the additional money on a mini greenhouse with peat pellets to get results. You can sow the seeds outside directly into the soil, using a spoon to sprinkle on soil to cover them — no need to invest in a hand trowel.

After your first season you will also be able to subtract the cost of buying seeds for the following year’s garden, and inch a little closer to sustainability, by collecting seeds from your harvest to use next time.

Oh, one more thing: I often find that store-bought tomatoes don’t last very long if left unrefrigerated (and refrigeration robs tomatoes of flavor). Since your home-grown tomatoes won’t have to travel lengthy distances to get to the dinner table, they’ll last longer without the big chill, thus retaining their fabulous flavor.

I’m casting these produce seeds upon the soil this year (all grown in containers on my balcony): lemon cucumber (organic), kermit hybrid Thai eggplant, mariachi hybrid pepper, Risentraube cherry tomato (an heirloom variety from Germany), purple Russian tomato (a small-fruit heirloom from the Ukraine), and golden sweet hybrid ( a yellow grape tomato).

I may try some sugar snap peas and a mesclun mix, too.

So don’t be put off by those who say you can’t — I’m proof that anyone can!

[Photos: The edible purple flower that preceded the kermit hybrid eggplant (top), and an Isis candy tomato – both from last season’s garden.]

Coming Sunday: A recipe that uses both the Thai eggplant and the Isis candy tomato