A country girl here...lol...yes I plant a garden and grow my own vegetables.
I planted Tomatoes..Eggplant..bellpepers..Sweet Bannana Pepper...Okra...Squash...Butterbeans...Watermelon..Cantaloupe....didn't get the peas planted this year because I was late getting my garden tilled and planted and the Deer would have eaten them anyway since they LOVE peas !
Homegrown vegetables are a taste of heaven in my book.

They did fine, but you have to watch the level of dirt and make sure it is watered almost every day. I thought it would be easier, but it is actually more labor intensive. Great alternative though if you don't have the ground space.

Good Question, Tot!

I'm like Janie, live in a city condo with a patio and although there's room for a "container garden" this year I only planted herbs and flowers.

I was raised in the country nearby though, and every year we grew and canned our own groceries, and even raised livestock & hunted, so we butchered our own meat to supplement our freezer, so I know the life-style well. In fact, I'm lucky as my Dad & his wife still keep a garden, so I work it often w/ him and benefit from his shared bounty.

For most of my adult life I've worked a hectic job that didn't leave much time or energy for gardening- even though for some it's a relaxing hobby- I recognize that gardening is hard work that requires daily attention. I also worked a job where I was at random locations for sporadic, brief periods of time that invlolved constant travel and long periods away from home, so planting and the upkeep of watering, weeding, harvesting, etc. just didn't fit into my lifestyle then.

Next summer I hope to plan and grow many things. I'm gonna take CanMan's advice and try growing the up-side-down 'maters. I also hope to follow Cathy's and Frannie's lead and grow so much that I have stuff to put-up for the winter, and share w/ neighbors!

I tried that Miracle Grow potting soil this year thats supposed to have enough food in it for several months. My stuff didnt do well at all. They did much better last year with just the plain old cheap potting soil. The herbs I put in it still havent gotten over 3 inches tall and they are very thin. I will never use it again.

Funny story...first year I grew stuff on the balcony it was just flowers. No matter what I tried they died and quick. I watered and even used the food sticks. They turned brown and croaked. I was leaving one day and my little neighbor who has since moved told me she just didnt know what was wrong with my flowers ...she said no matter how much liquid fertilizer she put on the for me didnt seem to help at all. Ah ha...between her "helping" me and the plant sticks I was using we incinerated the poor things lol.
The next year before I put anything out there I asked he to please not help me anymore lol.