If you grow vegetables and fruits in your garden you may not realize that eating them might not be the only way to appreciate their fresh taste and nutritional value. More and more people are indulging in homemade drinks using produce from their own garden and the potential flavor combinations are endless.

There are many ways that people are “drinking their garden”. Smoothies have become a billion dollar business and are popular all over the world. They are a great way to get your essential vitamins and minerals and boost your brain power, metabolism and your energy level. Their portability is a major plus and they don’t really require a big investment in terms of equipment. If you have a blender you can make a smoothie! You can also save some money by growing some of the ingredients yourself. Fruits such as strawberries & blueberries can even be grown if you don’t have a lot of garden space and if you have more space you can try raspberry bushes or even trees like cherry and apple. Green smoothies are also popular and you can grow spinach, kale, broccoli and even herbs like parsley can find their way into a green smoothie.

Juicing is also a popular way to maximize the nutritional benefits of your garden. Vegetable juices are popular in detox drinks which are designed to cleanse your body of toxins which are not good for you. Carrots are probably the most well known vegetable that can be used to make detox drinks but tomatoes, cucumbers and even peppers are juiced for this purpose. All of these vegetables are easy to grow and they also can produce significant quantities of fruit that makes juicing easy and cost effective for the whole family.

I would be remiss if I didn't also mention another trend in the country that can also be enhanced by what you grow in your garden. Home brewing your own beer and fermenting your own wine are becoming increasingly popular as a hobby. Grapes can be grown in a home garden and turned into wine and if you have room for an apple tree you can make your own cider for Thanksgiving! Would you believe that people make beer that includes cucumbers and even cilantro?

You too can turn your fruits and vegetables into delicious and nutritious drinks. Some combinations can border on the “unusual”, but isn't that part of what makes gardening fun? After all, when it comes right down to it gardening is literally about your own taste; both figuratively and now even literally!