Can You Still Grow Your Own Food Anymore?
In June 2019, The Florida State Legislature passed a law permitting property owners to grow vegetables in their gardens. The legislation signed by Governor DeSantos went into effect on July 1. In essence, the law bans local governments or communities from enacting ordinances forbidding the practice. The legislation makes the point that even though a vegetable garden may not be as pleasing to the eye as the floral variety, the rights of the property owner to plant vegetables transcends what may not be as aesthetically pleasing to the neighbors.
The trail of the new law began when a couple living in Miami Shores Village contested a $50 a day fine levied against them by their community for growing vegetables in their front yard for personal consumption – a practice they had been engaged in for years. The couple, Tom Carrol and Hermine Ricketts filed a lawsuit, which they lost. After a series of appeals, the case came before the Florida Supreme Court. Ricketts and Carrol lost again. The Florida Supreme Court ruled in favor of Miami Shore’s right to “to control, design, and landscaping standards.”
But this was a couple that would not be easily deterred. They lobbied their state legislature which eventually agreed that the Villages and the courts actions represented “vast overreach” into the private lives of the property owners to use their garden as they saw fit, so long as it did not infringe on an adjacent property. In addition, the legislature noted the difficulty that many families experience getting fresh and affordable food.
Now that the law is in place, property owners who are considering a garden of edibles should take heed of certain cautions. For example, the prospective vegetable grower should be very careful when using insecticides, not only for the possibility of contaminating your own food, but according to Lawyers.com, also for the possibility of poisonous seepage into a neighbor’s property. This, of course, could place the growers at risk of a lawsuit.
One more thought: the would-be farmer should do his best to try to keep the planted area as far/hidden from a neighbor’s view as possible, especially if you have reason to believe that your neighbor considers it an eye sore. Another reason to try to keep the planted garden at a distance is the possibility of odors certain plants may emit.
Growing food in your own garden may be more common than many people think: about a third of all U.S. households grow some of their own food according to the National Gardening Association. The group says a 600-square-foot garden that costs about $70 a year to cultivate can grow 300 pounds of fresh produce worth about $600 annually.
Happy planting!