Are You Starting a Garden in Response to Rising Food Prices?

Yep. Already did.

I've got a line of dwarf fruit trees I'm espaliering across the side of my garage. I've got parsley, chives, basil, tomatoes, sorrel, carrots and celery planted. Lettuce is already gone.

And I've got an apple on one of my columnal apple trees.

I'll be putting in another dwarf apricot next year. My lemon tree is loaded.

And I started composting with a wormtopia. I'll be harvesting my first batch this weekend.

I did raised beds when I first moved it. Had cucumber, cantalope and other lovely stuff. I'd do raised beds but no longer have the space. The few years I did the raised beds I canned tomatoes as I planted way too many. But....they lasted me for months. I make my own spaghetti sauce.

 

Basil in pots because it's not readily available in China. Other vegetable supplies are reasonable. The Roma tomatoes in giant cans (from Italy) make better sauce than the fresh ones, but I have no idea how they can be sold here for 32 RMB/can and still make a profit.

 

I cannot garden any more. No garden space here, and too many infirmities (bad back, bad shoulders, etc.) And the price of food is no longer an issue for me.

But for many years I grew a big garden in North Dakota. I had 1/4 acre of garden space. Some years I planted it all, some years I let some of it lie fallow. I had the biggest Troybilt rototiller they made. It was hard, hot, exhausting work and I hated it. I did it, not to save money, but because the fresh veggies were a million times better than anything from the store. I miss those fresh veggies. I do not miss the back-breaking work in the hot sun. A quarter of an acre is a LOT of land to weed and hoe and rototill by hand.

 

I have 10 plants in pots on my side porch. They are a mix of cucumbers, tomatoes and peppers. This will be my first year with a "garden". I'm excited!

... Brad

 

Given the time involved, it's probably even more expensive to grow your own. Not that it's stopping me - we have grapes, plums, blueberries, raspberries, and lots of herbs. We're taking out most of the lawn and replacing it with garden beds, and will then be converting the garden beds to food production. By the time it's really necessary for people to have their own vegetable garden, we should be well established and experienced urban farmers.

 

I used to make a garden last year and I got a few things out of it. Very easy to plant are cucumbers, onions, carrots and eggplant.

The other stuff like beans, tomatoes, strawberries take much more time and care to properly grow.

But I made the garden because I like fresh food and the supermarkets cannot supply the quality of food which I would like to have.

Maybe I'll start one again this year or next year, but it's hard, time consuming work.

 

My family is starting a small garden to see how it works out and we have been growing some herbs for cooking for the past year. Mostly out of curiousity and education for the kids but the parents are getting educated at the same time.

I think disasters like New Orleans show us that you can't always count on the nearby grocery (or sometimes any grocery) to supply everyone's needs all the time. I also believe that most folks will not have enough forewarning of a food shortage to start a garden in time.

 

Just love to garden.

Have square foot gardens. A circle garden. I have mushrooms on the way for incorporation into my garden and lready have shitake logs and oyster mushroom logs.

Congratulations on taking up gardening! Great way to reduce food costs while at the same time reducing the pollution signature that accompanies food which is produced, stored and transported for our consumption.

 

I have a small garden before the food price increase. I planted 3 blueberries, few chinese cucumbers, cherry tomatoes, etc. I like to have a garden full of edible stuff.

 

we just try to get produce from the local veggie farm. we picked strawberries last weekend, a big basket full for $3. that's cheaper than a little container of white-inside "strawberries" from the grocery store.

i have some plants in back, but the weather has been hard on them.

 

Bee13,
Here are the directions for a circle garden. Some folks say it was a design popularized for victory gardens in WWII.
Constructing a circular vegetable garden

You'll see that the compost pile is centrally located so that nutrients can flow to the vegetables.

Yes, I like Mel's concept and do think it saves time. As you know Mel says that a single 4' X 4' block requires about 1 hour of maintenance per week. I agree, but think most gardeners will probably be in the garden more because tending a garden is quite enjoyable.

The towers are my version of trellis'. I have a forest and lots of small trees so using poles makes sense for me. The "lantern" is actually a hummingbird feeder. I learned earlier this week that hummingbirds eat about 500 small insects and spiders per week. So, I put my feeder in my garden.

I'm sure you also saw the hand water pump. I drove a well since I have ground water within 25' foot of the surface. I would use rainwater if I didn't have this option. I enjoy pumping water for our vegetable and flower gardens. For me, much more rewarding than an exercise machine.
Here is a link providing info for driving a well: Driving a Wellpoint

Here is another link for making a rain barrel:
How To Make A Rainbarrel

In the background you can see my pond. I do store water from my roof in the pond. We enjoy watching the tadpoles, mosquito fish and the goldfish.

If you have any questions just let me know.

 

We have had a a 60 • 60 ft2 garden that produces 9 months per year. Tomatoes are in cages 1 m diameter by 3 m tall, basil between each of 30 tomatoes. Lots of Capsicum peppers (bell, Italian, Serrano), eggplant, mint. Autumn garden includes greens, broccoli and broccolini. What we don't eat we share, put in soups to freeze for later or dehydrate.

Soil has been dug down two meters. Five cubic meters of horse manure brought in once a year and rototilled in. All plants on elevated berms with drip irrigation. This is our 30th year of a very productive garden. Bonus: we don't purchase vegetables at a store, except at farmer's markets.

 

Never was much of the gardner type..but have thought about it. At this point food prices in my area are about the same, in fact they have not gone up at all..maybe 15 cents for common items. I eat alot of meat anyway and canned veggies mostly, tv dinners..etc .Big steak guy.

If they keep going up to insane levels or something i can see the investment in building a garden worth the effort and time, but i just dont see if yet with prices at the market. I live in a very arid climate as it is, while one can grow various things it can be a bit more diffcult. Our yard is also a small patch of land, the side of the house has nothing but rocks, which would need to be plowed and all the rocks removed to even begin a garden..so money to do this would not be feasbile yet. When it's 10 bucks for a loaf of bread i can see it

my grandma on the other hand is 82 and grows plums still in her larger backyard..she also has a variety of desert floral growing. She has grown beans in the past here. They grew up as dirt farmers back in the 30s in nevada

 

My espaliered trees will be very informal. I just want them flat against the garage and going up as natural as they do. I won't be training them harshly. That particular bed is only maybe 18-24 inches wide.

Perhaps canning wasn't the most accurate description. I jar them. I boil the jars. Then put the tomatoes in, wipe them down screw on the lids and bands and then put them in a hot water bath and boil them for as long as the directions say. When they cool down I remove the bands and test them. Then store in a cool, dry, dark place. I'll also freeze some for more immediate use. I've only done tomatoes but my mother has done peaches, apricots and other things. Each has it's own directions for preserving in glass jars. You used to be able to pick up everything you needed at the grocery store. I haven't checked on availability lately, but I suspect there is going to be a growing demand for this type of grocery item. The brand I use is Ball.

 

I also enjoy canning. My nomadic Air Force life kept me away from it for years. I plan to start again this year.

I'll do some recycling. I've got some quart jars salvaged from an old moonshine still the revenuers destroyed about 20 years agao about 1/4 mile from my house.

Gotta go...I can hear the banjos again.