Why I do not garden

[shooterdon]

This week there was a sale on canned vegetables. $.20 a can. We bought a bunch last year at $.19 but decided to get another 20 cases...240 cans. A little voice told me our temporary inflation may not be over for a while. I have all this crappy stuff that is so inferior to home grown to deal with. But, we will adapt.

$48 for 240 cans. If I could till, plant, tend, harvest, and can that much stuff in 48 hours, and seed was free, fertilizer was free and canning lids were free, gardening/canning would have a return of $1/hr. I am too lazy to do that.

I have friends who garden and can to save money, but my little pea brain cannot figure it out.

 

[Aquamoose]

Small acres folks buy their own tractor to tend to their properties but always at a loss, weekend woodworkers spend thousands on good equipment to make wooden bowls & rustic benches to sell only to reinvest the money into new tools or wood, quilt blankets that takes a few weeks to make gets sold for little. They’re called hobbies. The benefit is the enjoyment in whatever they do.

 

[Doofy]

Wow! We have no canned goods under $1. Most are around $2 or more per can.
Our monthly feed bill for the Wife and I runs over $500 per month.

We have eaten out at restaurants maybe 6 times this year. My last burger was $17.

 

[jyoutz]

There is no store I have been to that sells canned vegetables that cheap. Not even the dollar store and much of their products are nearing the expiration date.

 

[Wagtail]

Wow! We have no canned goods under $1. Most are around $2 or more per can.
Our monthly feed bill for the Wife and I runs over $500 per month.

We have eaten out at restaurants maybe 6 times this year. My last burger was $17.

Yeah but that's 'Alaska' prices.

My ship (Navy) once pulled into Unalaska Island to fuel + a short 'port visit' (late '80s). The price of a hamburger was about the same, but in '80s $s. Once it was explained that EVERYTHING was flown in... well, except King Crab, it reduced the price shock.

 

[Doofy]

Yeah but that's 'Alaska' prices.

My ship (Navy) once pulled into Unalaska Island to fuel + a short 'port visit' (late '80s). The price of a hamburger was about the same, but in '80s $s. Once it was explained that EVERYTHING was flown in... well, except King Crab, it reduced the price shock.

Alaska still has a very large military presence. I am sure glad their wages have improved.

 

[Diggin It]

I haven't seen it that low, but we regularly see sales of 2 or 3 cans of something for a dollar. Thing is, they usually have limits, so one person probably wouldn't be able to buy that many cases.


Then again, there are all the cans to get rid of. Plastic containers I can re-use. Cans, not so much.

 

[Torvy]

For what it is worth, we gardened a lot when I was a kid. Mom was an organic gardener before that was a 'thing'. It was just a way for a poor family to have fresh veggies. It didn't eliminate store- bought stuff, just reduced it.

Seeds we paid for, but some she would harvest from previous year's crop...not all would be viable. Potatoes often did quite well just saving eyes from previous crop. Fertilizer was just composted waste. We never paid for it.

Canning has a lot of sunk costs that once you are in, the costs per year are mostly your time. She washed and sterilized everything.

As others have mentioned, 20 cent canned goods are rare. You cannot fairly do a cost benefit analysis versus the lowest possible price. Average would be better.

I suppose you could get free seed from someone, just poke holes in untilled ground, skip fertilizer and just harvest what you get. Your yields would be considerably lower, but the cost in terms of outlay and labor would be low.

Another thing to consider...commercially canned produce is overly salted and barely qualifies as 'food', IMHO. It has its place, but I much prefer fresh or frozen. Compare the cost of fresh produce to the home grown version.

Ultimately, for me, there is a certain peace and satisfaction eating food I grew myself.

 

[oosik]

We had a large garden - 80 x 120 - when we first move onto the property. We grew most everything we liked. Then at year three, the "locals" found our garden. They liked most everything we planted in the garden also.

At first it wasn't so very bad. We shared and they, more or less, abided by this program. Then a group of "outsiders" moved in. They had no plans to share anything. They took everything - shared nothing.

It was obvious. We were doing all the work and getting nothing.

So ..... regrettably we quit gardening. A short pickup trip down south and we could come home with all the fresh garden produce we could ever use.

Now - I have two circular planters. About four feet in diameter. I plant Acorn squash in one - Butternut in the other. Wire mesh over the top of each. I get 25 to 30 of each variety every fall.

 

[jaydee325]

Personal gardening is not about saving money for us. It is the enjoyment (someone above said hobby) and having better produce to eat.

My wife freezes any extra we have and that lasts part way through the winter. Quality is much better than store bought and we know where it comes from and how it was handled. When it runs out, we buy fresh from the grocery store. Hardly ever buy anything in a can and that is usually something that is special such as sauces.

Food in our budget gets top priority and we don't scrimp.

I have to give my darling wife props here. She is an amazing cook. She should have been a chef! We very seldom get something in a restaruant better than she makes.