GrlIntrpted wrote:

My husband and I are in the midst of a heated debate. He disagrees with me
that growing your own produce is cheaper than purchasing it.

Besides the health benefits, and obviously the better tasting produce I
would be very interested in hearing everyone's thoughts on the subject.

Is it cheaper or more expensive to grow your own crops?

-M




The initial expense for the home gardener is far more than what you'd
spend in the supermarket. This year alone, I spent $300 on hose and
timers, $1000 on two small greehouses, $50 on potting soil, $30 on
mulch...not to mention $40 in seed. There's no way in the world I'd
recoup those costs in the next ten years (and that's just this year's
investment). Last year I spent well over $1000 to build five raised beds
and fill them with good bagged soil.

A very frugal gardener could get away with minimal cost but some are
unavoidable. Seed, mulch, manure, fertilizer, pest control measures...
that expands with the size of the garden and I imagine you'd be cutting
it close in terms of cost. My neighbour (the one with the brown thumb)
is a frugal gardener - he just opens the ground, throws in seed and
walks away...but his costs already outweigh anything he'll get out of
his garden.

Like you said, I grow for the pure enjoyment of growing as well as the
better tasting produce. To me, that outweighs the cost.

..

Zone 5a in Canada's Far East