That's awesome! I never thought about that. But then you would need to find some sort of farmers market or some place similar where you could sell that though right? Then there would be the cost of the booth, etc. Maybe if you had a few trees of each, then it could definitely be worth while.
I think in the long run you can save money
While I can only assume we are not saving more then we are spending at this point (a few years into gardening). I think if you do things like save seed, compost, grow transplants from seed or at nurseries on sale, and only grow what you eat a lot of and is high yielding then yes I do believe it is possible. It will take years though typically to get back the costs of building infrastructure and buying seeds. But after that it gets less and less expensive, and who knows with inflation, (the federal Reserve is going to do QE 3 or another round of printing money), what the cost of food will be. My guess is it will be significantly up. You can see our garden at my blog http://theurbanhomestaed.blogspot.co...ot-garden.html
We probably spent about $150-200 on our infrastructure and soil amendments. We also purchased a indoor greenhouse for about $30 (lights and fan included).
That's good info, and thanks! Loved the pictures on your blog. My wife grew up near you in White Bear Lake!
How long does it usually take to establish rasberries and aspargus to be at the point where it keeps producing without watering, fertilizer, etc...
profit from gardening?
I have not taken the time to break it down dollar by dollar from a baseline of what I was spending on store-bought produce then and what I am spending now, nor have I recently priced up what I produce (and not buy) to see what I am saving, but I am certain that I am saving. Even at times when I am not selling produce for profit, I am still saving money as I am able to harvest and produce meals for my family of 6 for about $2 total, on average.
It's easy to find affordable seed, and if you can find the non-hybrid, non-GMOs then you can continue to use your own saved seed indefinitely, so the seed purchase could theoretically be a one-time investment.
And as long as you are not farming a large spread, irrigation can be done by hand and hose so there is little other infrastructure costs involved. Sure, one can spend a fortune on beds and irrigation and high-end soils, but it's really not necessary, if you ask me. I have gotten by with minimal cost and commercial product use for years with explosive gardens that overwhelm my ability to use it all - that's where market and trade comes in, and we get back to the point.
When I have extra harvest, I work out deals with local poultry farms and dairy farms and even some cattle ranchers to swap out for their wares, so I save money on those things which I do not grow.
I also take extra veggies and make great stews and soups and sauces which I freeze and store for the lean times, and combined with some uncooked pasta storage, I have enough food to last my family about half a year in case my garden fails one year for some reason.
It is also great to use the berry gardens for profit - last month my berry plants were spitting out about 7 gallons per day! And considering the $3 - $5 per pint you may pay at a fresh market or chain store, you can imagine the sales I generated!
By the way - raised beds are not a cheat, they are a great way for an aging person or anyone with back problems to harvest more easily (not as much bending/squatting).
Best wishes to all!
Organic Mommy
"Peace on Earth and Good Will Toward (Wo)Men"
I am a proud supporter of www.arkinstitute.com - "sowing the seeds of self reliance"
Last edited by organic mommy; 08-25-2011 at 03:09 PM.
Awesome post Organic Mommy! Lots of good info in there. Thanks!
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Just a friendly note that I am not a professional and just garden for fun. I love home grown produce and have grown up seeing my dad tend to his garden day and night. I have recently picked up this hobby as well. Don't really see us saving money really, since we grow some of the basic fruits such as carrots, tomatoes, melons, etc. But I can tell you the taste difference is noticeable when you eat them!
Hope that helps
Last edited by kzhen; 11-16-2011 at 07:04 PM.
I spent so much in my gardening. I have to buy this and that, to name a few - pots, fertilizers, mulches, gardening tools, etc.
but all worth for every penny spent. Gardening for some ain’t just a hobby but doing it to earn a living.
Lower Your Food Bill
Stop paying for fresh food when you can
grow all you need for almost no effort.
Stop eating fresh food that you don't know about: Pesticides? Bacteria? Genetically modfied?
Start eating right and protect yourself and your family and put $5000 back in your pocket.
Food. It's the most the most important thing to all of us. I bet you didn't realise just how much you could save on your food bill each year. We researched and calculated the average family spends around $5000 per year on fresh food. That is a huge amount of money considering the average family earns less than $100,000 per year. That is almost 5% of your income you could save on your food bill.
Seriously. Control your food bill and you will get more control over your finances.
Consider this. If I told you all you needed to do was take half a day - ok let's say one full day, (considering most people will procrastinate) and less than $100 and you will be well on your way to reducing your food bill by around $5000 per year! After your half day of work (or full day) you only need to spend another few hours during the year checking over your vegetable garden and picking food from it. Then each year after that, your garden seeds itself and starts growing more food all over again with little effort from you.
If you're a seasoned gardener or you know one who has a vegetable garden I bet they'd tell you it takes a lot more work than that. Well I can confidently tell you, they have it all wrong. I know this fellow Jonathan White. Jonathan is a Horticulturalist and Environmental Scientist who has dedicated his life to working out how to produce food in the easiest possible way. This guy lives on a small farm and has a garden that produces all the food he, his wife and two kids need each year. Better still, he has proven his method has he has been doing this for years.
Let me tell you another thing about why you really, really need to get your act together and start growing your own food. Pesticides, Imported food, genetically modified food and bacteria.
Did you know they grow tomatoes in China, export them to Italy and then re-export them around the world as Italian tomatoes?
Do you remember the outbreak of E.Coli a few years back? That was a breakout of bacteria in baby spinach.
Are you aware that many foods sold are not clearly labelled as genetically modified? You'd never know. Some scientists say you have nothing to worry about and others say the process of life is so delicate and intricate that a small change in one part of the process can have dramatic changes in other areas and we might never know.
Did you know that most fresh food travels long distance - mainly by road - before it gets to your supermarket? If oil skyrockets again - which the so called experts predict - what effect on prices do you think that will have on your food bill? It may not be $5000 you save but could be anywhere up to $6000, $7000 or even more.
I highly recommend you get your hands on Jonathan's book and video package, Food4Wealth. It takes you through everything you need to know to get your own vegetable garden up and running successfully with the least amount of effort.
Just having Jonathan's book and getting you in this mindset is insurance against the volatility this world is throwing at all of us. Get control of your food bill starting today. Stop putting it off. In a year you'll either be thankful for finding out about this invaluable ebook and video package or you'll be kicking yourself that you didn't start sooner.
Cheers from Australia
http://www.justlovegardening.net/Organic-Gardening.html
http://www.justlovegardening.net/Stumpgrinding.html
Gardening has just been a hobby for me and I wasn’t really expecting it to have a significant impact on household expenses on food. Still, I think like any hobby it’s bound to show some returns after some time. Right now all I'm after is that feeling of peace and contentment while I'm tending my plants.
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