I do this, but I swear I spend so much on potting soil, and containers (though now that I have enough that cost is taken care of) that I’m not sure it’s saving me anything. I’d love to plant into the ground but I’ve got hard soil so I’d have to rent a tiller and amend the soil for ages, which is also an additional cost. Still planning on planting tons of potatoes, various tomatoes, and an herb garden this spring. It’s an enjoyable hobby, but it is just that; a hobby. Those tend to be expensive, at least the ones I choose.
Why not start with what you got and improve the quality over time as you can, rather than hope for maximum efficiency setup from scratch. Like maybe rent the tiller and just see what grows with the soil as is? Then compost and fertilize.
Like change the parameters of the game. See how much you can do with as little money as possible. It might be less time efficient, but more cash efficient, if that’s what you care about.
Remember it’s YOUR, hobby, you make the rules of the game, then play it.
I save most of my seeds and buy super good seeds from the Ukraine for cheap, also do all my garden work with a hoe, shovel and 5-tine fork. Just dug another 15 pounds of the sweetest carrots, not at all like the tasteless ones you get at the grocery store. I mulch with leaves and old hay that are free. One bag of organic fertilizer lasts two years. We give a lot of extra produce away every year. Had to start selling some garlic to get rid the extra. Masanobu Fukuoka and Ruth Stout were my inspirations for low labor gardening. Did I mention I’m pretty lazy?
I’m pretty lucky where I live, my house used to be on the side of a lake, and the soil is very soft and easy to dig into. I’ve got a tiller attachment for my weed trimmer that I use to till the soil in the spring.
But even if you don’t have good soil, you can still set up a hydroponics bay with whatever space you have available. It’s not too expensive to get started either. Probably less than you’ll spend on eggs these days. 😂
I do this, but I swear I spend so much on potting soil, and containers (though now that I have enough that cost is taken care of) that I’m not sure it’s saving me anything. I’d love to plant into the ground but I’ve got hard soil so I’d have to rent a tiller and amend the soil for ages, which is also an additional cost. Still planning on planting tons of potatoes, various tomatoes, and an herb garden this spring. It’s an enjoyable hobby, but it is just that; a hobby. Those tend to be expensive, at least the ones I choose.
you’d think it would be dirt cheap
Why not start with what you got and improve the quality over time as you can, rather than hope for maximum efficiency setup from scratch. Like maybe rent the tiller and just see what grows with the soil as is? Then compost and fertilize.
Like change the parameters of the game. See how much you can do with as little money as possible. It might be less time efficient, but more cash efficient, if that’s what you care about.
Remember it’s YOUR, hobby, you make the rules of the game, then play it.
I spent approximately $500 on a raised bed and grew like, idk, less than 20 cherry tomatoes. (I wasn’t doing it for money, but still.)
I save most of my seeds and buy super good seeds from the Ukraine for cheap, also do all my garden work with a hoe, shovel and 5-tine fork. Just dug another 15 pounds of the sweetest carrots, not at all like the tasteless ones you get at the grocery store. I mulch with leaves and old hay that are free. One bag of organic fertilizer lasts two years. We give a lot of extra produce away every year. Had to start selling some garlic to get rid the extra. Masanobu Fukuoka and Ruth Stout were my inspirations for low labor gardening. Did I mention I’m pretty lazy?
I’m pretty lucky where I live, my house used to be on the side of a lake, and the soil is very soft and easy to dig into. I’ve got a tiller attachment for my weed trimmer that I use to till the soil in the spring.
But even if you don’t have good soil, you can still set up a hydroponics bay with whatever space you have available. It’s not too expensive to get started either. Probably less than you’ll spend on eggs these days. 😂