Brooklyn1 Gravesend1 wrote:

Break even over a couple of decades, that's twenty years, that
indicates a lotta bucks invested... not to mention unanticipated costs
like pump, wiring, electric, and plumbing, and what happens when it
doesn't rain... it would be far less costly to simply buy your produce
from the stupidmarket/farmstand. In dry climates water from a cistern
would get sucked up into the hot bone dry ground in no time, far
faster than you can collect it, a total waste. Unless you have a
natural body of water to pump from or your own well then what makes
the most sense is to keep your hobby farm small and use tap water. My
garden is located right along side a natural spring fed stream, even
during the dry spells it can keep the ground fairly damp for like 2-3
weeks. I have my own well too, but were I to use it constantly it
would cost a lot to repair it when it broke down. I learned to keep
my vegetable garden small, a few years back I gave up more than 1/3 to
blueberry bushes... a 50' X 50' plot can produce enough veggies for
six families, I got tired of giving them away. Knowing then what I
know now I would have built my garden 1/4 its size.

It is not all about cost. I prefer not to consume genetically engineered,
roundup filled soil and pesticide on my produce. If one purchases organic
produce, those cost factors may change dramatically. I can have varieties
that are not found at your local market. Also for me it is about being
independent, which also beyond a cost factor.

--
Enjoy Life... Nad R (Garden in zone 5a Michigan)