Monday, August 5, 2013

How Much Does a Garden Grow: July 2013

We're almost there!  By the end of July, the garden was very close to breaking even and moving into profitability!

The garden spreadsheet has gotten too large to share in its entirety on here, so I'll have to share some highlights with you:

  • Expenditures held steady at $278.70.  It is very unlikely that we will make any more purchases, unless I pick up some lettuce seeds on clearance.  So, we have a stable target.
  • The blueberries did much better this year than expected.  When I first looked at my one productive bush (along with two that set just a few berries), I predicted we would harvest 12-16 oz. of berries. Instead, we wound up with 26.5 oz. for a value of $11.93.
  • Zucchini, of course, have been very productive.  Organic zucchini were $3.36 a pound here, and I brought in 440 oz. (27.5 pounds) through the end of July, for a value of $92.40.  We have eaten zucchini at nearly every meal, put up zucchini relish, and given several pounds away.
  • Cucumbers, too, were $2.56 a pound, and we have brought in 607 oz. (37.9 pounds) through the end of July for a value of $97.99.  We are eating cucumbers at every meal too, plus turning lots of the cukes into bread and butter pickles.  For a couple of weeks now, I've been making pickles every other day.
  • Corn in the store is $0.49 per ear, and we have harvested two ears.  The squirrels are fighting us for the rest.
  • Likewise, organic apples are $0.89 a piece, and we have harvested one.
  • Basil, as I mentioned before, is hideously expensive in the store, at the equivalent of $1.00 per ounce for fresh leaves.  I've brought in 7 ounces for cooking thus far.
  • Organic tomatoes on the vine are $3.49 in the store, and I've brought in 5.6 pounds so far for a total of $19.80.  So far, the Burpee Super Sauce are the first to crop, so they are ahead in the production race.  However, there are lots of green tomatoes out there on all the plants, and the mild weather means that the plants continue to set fruit.
Overall, I'm pretty sure that the garden is already profitable as of this writing, or at least close.  It is a pretty good garden year, and I can't wait to see how much produce I can grow on a small suburban lot with fairly marginal soil.

How is your garden growing this year?
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