Gardeners: What do you really save by gardening? Community Project!

[vfem]

We paid another $60 worth of trees into our orchard. I think these make a great investment since I won't have to replant every year, and fruit can be pretty pricey. It also looks like this year I may actually get some fruit from trees we planted over the last 2 years. Here's our peach tree's first bloom!!!!

I will probably eat what we can, and can the rest. But its nice to know I'll have 3 trees total in a few years and can sell additional peaches if we needed the $$$ for our efforts.

I also have 2 pear and 4 apple I hope to get fruit from soon. Maybe the apples this year... but probably a year or 2 on the pear.

 

[vfem]

We spent more money in the last week... not that we had to, but I saw somethings I really wanted to try... like a new squash, and leeks. I couldn't help myself. So I'm adding it to my list of expenses.

However, we 'traded' this year for a 5 year old grape vine. We planted the first week of March. We checked today and it have already started developing grapes!!!!! All I can think, is I'm so over joyed it all has been worth every penny!!!!

 

[vfem]

Today, we got to add our first positive to our spread sheet. I harvested 2 lbs of Radishes from the garden!!! Hooray!!!!!!!

I think this project has the potential to go a long ways, anyone else going to join? The spreadsheet is still available, and The Easy Garden thread is still jumping.

 

[Acre of Blessings]

Quote:
I wasn't thinking right when I planted the Radish seeds and I planted them to deep

anyways I have replanted and theya re now coming up so I hope to harvest some of them soon.

Our potatoes are coming up and the cabbages, brussel sprouts, & onions are looking great. The strawberries are blooming away

can't wait till the garden is in full bloom!!!

 

[vfem]

That's ok, this was my second planting... AND I totally FORGOT to plant my diakon radishes, but I thought I did... so now I gotta go do that!

My fennel and bok choy are going strong. Hoping to help fennel bulbs in May.

 

[xyresicchick]

i have spent about 400$ on my gardening so far this year... and this has saved me thousands in therapy costs!

this is me before gardening...

and after?....

 

[DLMKA]

The value of eating healthy and passing the knowledge of growing food to the kids is hard to put a pricetag on. I don't care how much you spend on your garden you'll end up ahead in the long run.

 

[vfem]

This is all very true. I would never quit gardening even if it were to put me in the poor house.

But getting people interested in starting, they like to have an idea of what they are saving, what they are making and any #'s involved just to put in the investment. They joy it brings is an unexpected bonus.

I am just curious as to where my numbers will put me... I think my husband is very interested, especially since he doesn't care much for my gardening, he just cares about his fruit trees and grapes.

I' really am hoping to gather as much information from everyone as I can, and use it to get some numbers country wide... enough to write a short book and an article about it. I want to inspire people to take this on!

The book will include a lot about simple set ups, fencing options and maybe even quotes from some of you gardeners! You all have something great to say about the experience.

(P.s. - no info will be use without permission and credits, but I need some data to go by.)

 

[DLMKA]

I am going to use this (probably modify it a little) for our school garden project. It's all brand new this year and I would like to have something at the end of the year to show the school administration the quantity of vegetables produced and at what cost. I've had to shell out $347 from my own pocket to buy a liability insurance policy since we were using school property so that's going to affect the overall cost/lb.


http://www.facebook.com/#!/group.php?gid=343821452284&ref=ts

 

[hangin'witthepeeps]

I too have been bitten by the garden bug. I had lots of scrap wood left over from building the 2, 3 now 4 coops that we have.

I was collecting free wood anywhere and everywhere. So we now have two 4 x 8 raised beds.

I have my free buckets from work for some plants and we want to build a couple more 4 x 8 SF beds. I will get a load of top soil delivered on Saturday for $60 from our local landscape place. It's 4 "somethings" yards or scoops or however they measure it. He said it would fill the dimensions of my two boxes. I will add in my chicken compost and peat moss so I hope to make three boxes. I bought some heirloom seeds from a BYC auction for $11 and have planted them in the used egg cartons and they have sprouted.

I did go and buy some started plants at the local Feed Store and spent about $25 for plants and Miracle Grow Potting Soil.

Question: How do I test the pH of my soil and what is optimum?
Question: How do I compost horse manure so that the grass seeds "die" and I don't have grass growing prolifically in my garden beds?

I was raised picking in my grandmothers garden and canning and freezing vegetables. I do not have a green thumb and hope the SFG works for me, because nothing else has. I will keep track of some expenses but as some on here have mentioned already, getting started takes more $$$ but if you spread it out over the years of use, it will be negligible. TIA Melissa

eta: correct spelling errors