Maybe it would be a good idea to collaborate with neighbours or friends or such, economies of scale and whatnot.
It’d potentially eventually pay for itself and save you a $1.33 or much more over a lifetime, but actually when you factor in all the costs of the gardening supplies and water and just all the associated costs with setting yourself up to grow them it’s going to take a lot longer for you to save that $1.33. Hope you like tomatoes, you’ll need to eat plenty to make it worthwhile.
I do think that numbers here are much more complex than people give them credit for, firstly no gardener I know only grows six tomatoes and secondly there are added benefits which come from it being an active hobby plus various health benefits.
I think there are bonuses that are very hard to get elsewhere, making friends by sharing excess harvest for example - if you brought tomatoes and give a bag full to someone you barely know they’ll think you’re odd but give them a bag of ones you’ve grown and next time you see them they’ll tell you how nice whatever they cooked with it was and at some point they’ll probably give you a couple of courgettes or invite you to pick from their strawberies while they’re away.
It gives a real connection to reality and passing time too, watching your plants struggle from the soil, potting them up and helping them through the various stages of life until they’re fruiting and ready for harvest. Watching the weather, keeping track of how much it’s rained and when to plant different things or what to water and feed - it’s very grounding, especially learning to accept whatever comes because you can only do so much and the rest is out of your control.
I could go on but just one more thing, having excess fruit opens up so many possibilities that you’d never bother with otherwise, making pies and jams just to make use of them feels so good and it’s such a great way to discover new things - my dad made a recipe he found for courgette cake partly as a joke in a year they had a bumper harvest and now it’s everyone’s favourite cake.
Actually one more thing, I was away from home recently and had to buy things I’m used to picking, herbs are insane prices! And awfull quality. A widow box full of herbs saves about twenty dollars a month and that’s without even taking into account having a tub of coriander (cilantro) for mojitos.
Tomatoes are too fickle as far as I’m concerned. I grow all kinds of stuff, but never have luck with tomatoes. The flowers don’t pollinate without vibration, they need temperatures in a tight range to fruit, basically every pest on earth destroys them, just not worth it to me anymore. Which is a shame because I love them, but I’m basically over growing tomatoes.
I have like six different tomato plants growing out of jars (started as seeds) hydroponically. They take almost no effort. It’s actually super easy to grow them if you eliminate nature from the process lol.
Yeah, maybe I’ll try that when I have a greenhouse.
Dude, I grow tomatoes in a 4’ x 6’ plot of dirt by the sidewalk in Montreal with zero tending and I have more tomatoes than I know what to do with every year. What are you doing so wrong?
They also taste way better than store-bought ones.
Seriously. They barely taste like the same ‘fruit’.
Also one of the easier garden vegetables (yes, vegetable, fight me) to plant. Great for beginners.
It’s a fruit, you donut.
I’m tired of zombie tomatoes from supermarkets
It is true. I planted zucchinis this year. I’ve gotten at least a dozen of them and they’re massive. There’s still at least a dozen coming and they make for the best soup ever. You can make a whole pan of soup (10L) with one big or two small zuchini. Meanwhile I’ve got 5 small tomatoes
I learned you harvest zucchini before they get massive as the taste is inversely related to the size though
My zucchini has been amazing! First time growing it and just a single plant but I’ve probably gotten like 8 large bois from it. Tomatoes seem suuuuper late, tons of berries but not even a hint of ripening.
Idk, I’ve mostly been quite successful with tomatoes. This year not so much, but then again, I planted the pumpkins too close, they gobbled up all the nutrients
Pumpkins are a bitch. Zuchini takes up a lot of space, but they also give a lot of zuchini. Pumpkins are the king of spacetaking and they don’t even give much in return.
Fucker straight up made its way across my small greenhouse and out the door, so yeah, king of spacetaking.
Do they think they have to sit and watch them grow?..
i grew indoor potatoes, got 3 small ones in 3 months. juiciest potatoes i ever had!
It’s not about the money!!
the system depends on you only being able to do one thing effectively, and needing to pay other people to do all the things you need but can’t do. When you do that, you have to go through several layers of government and corporate bureaucrats who all squeeze you for a little bit extra just because they’ve positioned themselves between you and what you need to live. To be self-sufficient is to cut all of these middlemen out from between you and the necessities of life. Gardening is a revolutionary act, it’s propaganda of the deed writ small.
Honestly, with my raised beds, between compost, seeds and fertilizer I probably lose money compared to buying tomatoes from the store. Home grown garden tomatoes are 10x better quality than grocery store tomatoes.
Not to mention the cost of watering.
I live in Ireland, we don’t pay for water (or even waste water out like they do in Germany), but the rain has been non-stop this year with the gulf stream. I’ve also just intalled a water butt out of a 500l repurposed whiskey barrel (again, Ireland) so that also helps with not having to use the hose (they call it the hose pipe)
Honestly, with my raised beds, between compost, seeds and fertilizer I probably lose money compared to buying tomatoes from the store. Home grown garden tomatoes are 10x better quality than grocery store tomatoes.
Bro I been growing edamame. Holy fucking shit. You’ll fucking cum.
“Your little nutsacks are gonna be quacking buddy.”
I should do that next year. Grow a bunch of stuff for the first time hydroponically this year and it has been fun. Even though the pruning gods would murder me if they saw my tomatoes.
Soybeans. You’ve been growing soybeans.
I think the person knows their own garden better than some rando lol
Edamame is soybeans.
Soybeans is edamame.
And if ever there is a day you can’t buy tomatoes for whatever reason, you will have them.
we actually switched to gerkins. so, if theres ever a day where we can’t buy pickels, we’d have them, but not the pickling ingredients as we can’t grow our own vinegar
You can! You just need a vinegar mother! I’ve not done it myself, but the way I understand it you can transfer the mother once the vinegar is to your liking, then on to the next one.
I had a look and its like a red liver looking thing? I’m not sure I’m prepared for this
When gardens are being raided due to mass starvation, people will go to your house and say, “Pickles, GROSS!” They will move on and your house will be spared.
good thing I’m not growing cheeseburgers
Growing weed saves a lot of money tbh
Besides weed, is there anything profitable to grow at home?
Most small gardens are not profitable. But it is therapeutic and the food tastes better.
Healthier too since the plant actually did its proper growing cycle and converted nitrogens into protiens
I also get to avoid slave labor in the supply chain, so…
Where the fuck do you think people buy tomatos?
https://civileats.com/2016/10/25/did-slaves-produce-your-food-forced-labor/
Lots of stuff on your grocery store shelves was made by slaves hidden away in some other country that either doesn’t have the laws or doesn’t have the ability to enforce them. Do you like chocolate or coffee?
Sure, for some produce that is true, I am aware. But tomatoes? At least where I’m from they are either local or come from other EU countries (Spain, The Netherlands usually).
Waste of time? You know, you can do other stuff while the tomatoes are growing. I have a job and a kid and a house and a social life. I also have some tomato plants. The latter doesn’t take away any time from the rest.
