One thing raised on yesterday's post was - How much do I spend on growing my own and is it worth it?
My first thought was that growing your own fruit and vegetables is not so much about the money but more about mental health, freshness, lack of chemicals and self reliance. Of course that's because I can afford to do it - but disregarding all the other benefits - is it worth the money spent?
Because I keep accounts it's easy to see what was spent this year on............
Multi purpose compost
Seeds
Onion setts
Pheromone Moth Traps for both Apple and Plum Trees
Seed Potatoes
A huge planting tub
Ant powder
Pepper Plants
16 Various Brassica Plants
The total spent on this was around £87. Of course the big pot will be around for years. The ant powder will last more than one year and the moth traps have sticky bits and pheromone things for next year and then I'll only need refills, and some seeds are still in the tin for next year too.
Now the difficult bit .......will my harvest be worth that spend? This is so hard to work out because some of the seeds I've used were bought last year, some were my own saved seed. Plus I'm harvesting things that were planted years ago - like rhubarb and raspberries that would cost several pounds to buy but have cost me nothing.
I've harvest 14 cucumbers so far and given 8 away, do I count those? do I value them as equivalent to the cheapest at 50p, the large at 85p or the organic at £1 each.
My brain seized up............I gave up thinking.
Instead I ate my first home grown aubergine in a delicious aubergine and tomato sauce. They are just 50p in the shop, but I don't know where they've come from, how many days they've taken to get here, what the people who grew them were paid and what they've been sprayed with.
My aubergine took me 10 seconds from greenhouse plant to pan....................and THAT'S one good reason to grow my own.
Back Tomorrow
Sue
It's not just about the cash, I agree, and small wonder your brain seized up trying to work it out. Mine would have too.
ReplyDeleteHowever, I guess the mental health benefits, the physical benefits (not just the good food but also the fresh air, the exercise, etc) and making the best of what you've got make the whole experience priceless.
And the aubergine looks amazing!
xx
I hope I can carry on growing food for as long as I'm able.
DeleteThe first aubergine/tomato pasta sauce of the year is a treat
One of my favourite veggies is the quite ordinary savoy cabbage, shredded and stir fried in butter and a dash of oil for a short time - it becomes crisp and delicious.. I still get it from the supermarket now I am no longer able to grow my own (age and where I live) and it is still good but nothing like one cut in the garden and in the pan in a few minutes.
ReplyDeleteThat's the crispy 'sea weed' served up with a Chinese meal - delicious
DeleteI do a version of this in winter. Slice sprouts thinly, stir fry in oil and butter in which some finely chopped garlic has already been allowed to take on a little colour (don't burn it). One of our favourites.
DeleteI wonder if one could spray it and bake it, like crispy kale. Must give that a go and see. Thanks.
Deletexx
Can’t beat home grown carrots, beans and tomatoes, so different.
ReplyDeleteCarrots are one thing I don't grow - Col used to pull them from the garden, wipe them and then crunch. I find homegrown a too strong taste. Odd I know
DeleteI love home grown although mine are only done from kitchen scraps so there isnt a huge amount,but enough for quite a few meals.Its the nice feeling of picking it and walking straight into the kitchen with it..I am so easily pleased these days,lol.It really is the mental health benefit for me.Hope that you have a lovely weekend,xxx
ReplyDeleteI agree about mental health - Doctors can prescribe gardening now as a benefit
DeleteSorry, I didn't mean to give you a mathematical headache! But you're definitely quids in. £87 a year is less than £1.70 a week. You clearly get an annual harvest worth more than that - and the fresh air and exercise benefits too. I think you're amazing!
ReplyDeleteThank you for helping me fill a blog post!!
DeleteAnother year the spend could be more or could be less makes it so difficult to work out.
Definitely worth growing your own, to have the exercise and pleasure of growing it, and then pesticide-free, fresh as it can be fruit and veg is Priceless!
ReplyDelete
DeleteExactly!
Totally agree with all the benefits of growing your own. You can't quantify that in monetary terms. I decided this year to really invest in my garden and allotment and have kept a running total of costs on my blog. The cost of plants and seeds isn't too bad, it's all the other things. But they're one of purchases so next year's costs will be much lower!
ReplyDeleteThe first year that I had a large garden I did keep detailed accounts, counting produce at what I would have paid in the supermarket, but donating my time, as I had that anyway. Oh yes it DID pay. Green Rabbit
ReplyDeleteHi Sue
ReplyDeleteI spent a lot of cash on fruit trees a few years ago, last year my apricot tree gave me more than 200 very large apricots. Breakfast in the poly tunnel is now free and delicious. Money well spent.
Kathy
I normally buy organic fruit and veg where possible so probably spend more money than most people, but for me the growing is not about the money but the satisfaction of growing your own and knowing that if you have to you can be self sufficient and not rely on the shops.
ReplyDeleteIt's watching them grow, caring for them, wondering at things of beauty, like your aubergine. How much would all that cost if you had to pay for it at a theme park or with a streaming subscription?
ReplyDeleteI think if you weigh up what you eat and what you grow and don't fall into the trap of trying to grow everything, homegrown food is definintely worth growing. For the satisfaction, the flavour, the goodness and the general 'I grew that' feeling.
ReplyDeleteWhere I went wrong my very first year with lots of space to fill was to try and grow everything. The work that I put into growing onions for instance, planting the sets, the weeding, the watering etc etc and at the end when I pulled them up there wasn't that much difference in size in the main crop. Then I went to the supermarket and they were selling identical onions on offer at 69p a bag. It felt demoralising.
But to grow specific crops of what you need and love like your aubergine for instance, or herbs, salad leaves, spring onions and to have fruit trees or a rhubarb patch THAT is what is so very worth it and what I intend to go for in the future.
It's about time versus money, which is more important, and striking a balance. When I was skint I was happy to spend hours in the garden looking after my growing food supply. Now I am not so skint, my interests have changed, so I buy my veg from wherever is convenient.
ReplyDeleteHard to put a price on satisfaction.
ReplyDeleteThere is a definite taste difference when it is home grown and a strong feeling of satisfaction. I suppose it is getting the right balance that suits.
ReplyDeleteI don't try to work it out any longer. Swings and roundabouts; roundabouts and swings. I get more pleasure trying to garden than any night out in a fancy restaurant, or a round of drinks at the pub, or even a night at the pictures would bring, and I know they would all cost so much more.
ReplyDeleteOne year I worked out that over the summer I had eaten substantially over £250 worth of fresh raspberries compared to shop prices, had stocked the freezer with them for the winter, and made 18 pots of jam. Now, that's a saving in anybody's book.
Well said. Gardening for the love of it.
ReplyDeleteYour third paragraph about your enjoyment of growing your food in addition to the good health aspect of it answers all questions! Based on that it would be worth it even if it cost more as long as you could afford it and enjoyed doing it. It is also obvious you are quite talented at gardening as well!
ReplyDeleteI sat one year and figured out costs and found it really was much less expensive to grow my own veggies than buy the frozen bags in the store. A big plus is that I know what went into growing them and how old they were when I froze them.
ReplyDeleteGod bless.