More on the cost of your vegetable garden
I am writing about whether our vegetable gardens paid for themselves this year and Gary, from Ample Harvest, suggests that we consult his Web site for food pantries to which we could donate our garden bounty.
I looked on the site for some local food pantries for my Baltimore readers. Our Daily Bread, in downtown Baltimore, was the only one close, though there are a number in D.C.
Our Daily Bread has benefited mightily from the produce harvested from the gardens around City Hall, planted for the first time this year.
Gary, if you are listening, it would be great if you could find us some more food pantries or homeless shelters or soup kitchen that could use our extras vegetables.
And, Garden Variety readers, you can add a pantry to the site as well.
After all, how much zucchini bread can a person eat?
Comments
My vegetable garden was free this year. I have a bumper crop of tomatoes, plum and roma. Green beans, squash, cukes, one pumpkin, cantaloup, and lots of weeds. The seeds all came from the winter's compost that we tilled into the garden. Other than putting up tomato cages, I didn't do any other work. Got a GREAT and delicious harvest, albeit it one that would make Martha Stewart cringe!!
Amy, that's amazing!!! I am always finding volunteer tomato seedlings where I spread my compost each spring. Maybe next year, I will let them go and see what happens!!!--Susan
Posted by: Amy Kehoe | September 10, 2009 1:19 PM
It is always worth it to garden. If you can help out someone else along the way it is that much better.
Amy, like the fact that your garden was free this year. Keep up the good work.
Dan and Deanna "Marketing Unscrambled"
Posted by: Dan and Deanna | September 10, 2009 11:39 PM
It's been erratic, but we're harvesting $20-50 worth of fresh produce and herbs a week at supermarket flyer prices - and some things like fresh okra I price at an arbitrary $5 a pound because it's seldom available.
I do not till, have free mulch and compost, so I'm out the cost of seeds, some fertilizer (the cheap chemical stuff), and extra water.
How big is your plot? -- Susan
Posted by: Lazy Gardens | September 11, 2009 11:57 AM
Susan - I have several plots. This is a huge yard, like cul de sac yards often are.
The squash bed is about 7x15, made of an old waterbed frame. It's going to have the winter leafy stuff because I can protect them from the quail best there.
The tomato jungle was only about 1x8, but they spread and sprawled from there and ended up covering a 10x15 or so area.
The "main" veggie area is about 8 by 30, along the sunny west side of the garage. That has the eggplants, chilis, okra and herbs. It will get some leafy greens and beans after the frost kills the eggplants and okra (some time in December). I just yanked out the tomatillos and planted some Early Girl tomatoes in there for a fall crop.
If I interplanted and did succession crops with the short-lived plants, I could probably triple production.
This is my first year with a drip irrigation system, and I'm loving it.
Posted by: Lazy Gardens | September 12, 2009 11:00 AM
Oooh! A use for our old waterbed frame! I love it!
Posted by: Dahlink | September 13, 2009 12:00 PM